Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States, will face criminal charges related to hush money payments. This will be the first time a former US President has faced criminal charges. A grand jury voted to indict Trump last week on approximately 30 counts relating to allegations of document fraud connected to hush money payments during the 2016 presidential campaign. He is set to appear in criminal court in New York City on Tuesday for fingerprinting and processing, and to enter a plea of not guilty in front of Judge Juan Merchan. Security is expected to be tight amid possible protests. Legal experts have said the judge could restrict Trump’s travel but is unlikely to do so as he is running for president and is not considered a flight risk.
The charges Trump is believed to face do not qualify for bail because they are nonviolent offenses under a 2019 New York state law which Trump criticized as being too soft on crime. Trump has denied any wrongdoing, calling the investigation a “witch hunt” and accusing Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, of being a “racist.” He has also claimed that he cannot get a fair trial in Manhattan.
The DA’s investigation centered on hush money payments made ahead of the 2016 election to two women who claimed to have had affairs with Trump. Michael Cohen, then Trump’s lawyer, paid adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000 in the closing days of the campaign. He has said he made the payment at Trump’s direction, and Trump had acknowledged repaying Cohen through payments that were labeled as legal expenses. Trump also acknowledged that he repaid Cohen.
Prosecutors also questioned witnesses about allegations that $150,000 in hush money was previously paid to former Playboy playmate Karen McDougal. Cohen, who testified before the grand jury, acknowledged he was involved in both payments in a guilty plea in Manhattan federal court in 2018.
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Aside from this case, Trump is also facing other legal problems, including a trial on civil rape and defamation claims brought by writer E. Jean Carroll in nearby Manhattan federal court, and a $250 million lawsuit brought by the New York attorney general’s office alleging that he, his family and his company grossly overstated his net worth to the tune of billions of dollars. Trump has denied wrongdoing in both cases. Trump is also the subject of at least three other criminal probes. Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney Fani Willis is investigating whether he and his allies coordinated attempts to alter the outcome of the 2020 election in the state. Special counsel Jack Smith is overseeing dual probes into Trump’s actions around the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol and his…
