Former US President Donald Trump is on trial for “buying silence” of two women ahead of the 2016 election and became the first ex-president to face criminal charges. Will this affect his presidential candidacy?
While “pay-for-hush” agreements are not criminalized under US law, Manhattan Attorney General Alvin Bragg investigated whether business records were falsified to hide money paid to two women ahead of the 2016 presidential election to keep them from talking about an alleged affair. with Trump.
After the former president was subpoenaed, the latter left his residence at the Ma-a-Lago resort in Florida for New York on Monday evening and spent the night at Trump Tower amid tight security, a heavy police presence and supporters gathered and Trump opponents.
On Tuesday afternoon, Trump left the tower for the courthouse, which upon arrival was automatically placed under arrest, and he was detained by police and fingerprinted. He stated before the start of the session, saying, “My call to appear in court seems surreal… I’m going to be arrested and I don’t believe this is happening in America.”
And then Trump walked out of detention, on his way to appear before a judge in New York. The former president was indicted in Manhattan City Court on 34 counts of falsifying first-degree business records related to “quiet money” payments, and became the first person to face criminal charges since serving as president in the United States.
The former president sat silent for most of the court hearings in New York, speaking only when necessary. In presenting their evidence in the case, prosecutors told the judge that Trump wrote threatening posts on social media.
Trump’s lawyers responded that their client was disappointed by the case, which he said was “a huge injustice.”
The criminal charges carry a maximum penalty of up to 4 years in prison each. During the hearing, Trump denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty, while his lawyers confirmed that there were no federal crimes on the list.
Trump’s next in-person hearing is set for Dec. 4 in New York, two months before the 2024 Republican primary.
After the session ended and he left the court, Trump returned to Florida and made statements critical of the court proceedings against him.
Trump said the only crime he committed was that he wanted to fearlessly defend the country from those who wanted to destroy it. He has been highly critical of the administration of current President Joe Biden.
Trump also repeated many of the statements he made during his campaign and said he was the victim of a conspiracy by the Democratic Party to prevent his re-election.
He called the court biased against him and deplored the fact that prosecutors were investigating cases against him in New York, Georgia and Washington, DC.
The possibility of conviction is still unclear, but the allegations against Trump, who has already begun his campaign to return to the White House, are forcing the US to face a political crisis.
Source: RT