New York: As security is tightened in Manhattan, former US President Donald Trump is scheduled to fly from Florida to New York City on Monday ahead of his scheduled arraignment in connection with hush money paid to a porn star before the 2016 election.
On Tuesday, Trump—the first former US president to be charged with a crime—will be arraigned, fingerprinted, and photographed at the courthouse in Manhattan's financial district. According to his attorneys, he will enter a not guilty plea.
The specific charges listed in the grand jury indictment have not been made public, and Trump's arraignment on Tuesday marked his first appearance before a judge in the case and in court.
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According to an adviser, the Republican politician-turned-businessman will depart from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach at noon on Monday, arrive in New York later that day, and spend the night at Trump Tower in Manhattan before showing up at the courthouse on Tuesday morning.
The arraignment is scheduled for Tuesday at 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT), according to a court official. Trump will then fly back to Florida and make a speech at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday at 8:15 p.m. (or 00:15 GMT on Wednesday), according to his office.
The Manhattan Criminal Court building downtown and Trump Tower both had barricades put up by New York police over the weekend, and some other courtrooms will be cleared.
Police promised to be ready as demonstrations are anticipated at those locations. The New York Police Department issued a statement saying that "officers have been placed on alert and the department remains ready to respond as needed and will ensure everyone is able to peacefully exercise their rights."
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As part of security measures, other courtrooms on the higher floors of the courthouse will be closed before the arraignment, a court official said. They're not coming after President Trump, they're coming after us, he's just in their way, US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted on Sunday, inviting people to join her at a protest near the courthouse on Tuesday.
The grand jury heard testimony about a $130,000 payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the final weeks of the 2016 presidential campaign before the indictment. During a 2006 encounter with Trump at a hotel in Lake Tahoe, Daniels claimed she was paid to remain silent. Trump rejects the scandal.
Trump, 76, held the office of president from 2017 to 2021. In November, he announced his intention to run again in 2024 in an effort to deny Democratic President Joe Biden a second term.
Alvin Bragg, the Democratic district attorney for Manhattan, conducted the investigation that led to the indictment, which was made public last Thursday. Trump has defended his innocence and claimed that the accusations are politically motivated.
Attorney for Trump Joe Tacopina stated on Sunday that he anticipates more information regarding the arraignment to be resolved on Monday and mentioned that the Secret Service, which guards former presidents, will also be involved on Tuesday. Tacopina stated that due to security concerns, it is unlikely that there will be a "perp walk"—perp is shorthand for perpetrator—in which a person who has been charged is paraded in front of the media.
Tacopina added that once the indictment is made public, Trump's attorneys will "dissect" it and consider "every potential issue" to raise in defence, and he anticipates at some point filing a motion to dismiss the charges.
Regarding the arraignment, Tacopina said on CNN's "State of the Union," "I honestly don't know how this is going to go — hopefully as smoothly as possible — and then we begin the battle to right this wrong."
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Trump is anticipated to appear before Justice Juan Merchan, the same jurist who oversaw the criminal trial in which Trump's real estate business was found guilty of tax fraud last year. In that case, Trump was not put on trial.
According to a court representative, the judge has requested the positions of both parties on whether cameras and video should be permitted in the courtroom and will make a decision on Monday.