Wednesday, November 1, 2023

Lawyer Says Trump Preparing for Court Hearing in New York

Date:

Donald Trump is preparing for a legal battle as he faces charges related to hush money payments made to a porn star. The former US president is set to fly to New York City from his Mar-a-Lago home on Monday for his court hearing, and then return to Florida afterwards. His lawyer, Joe Tacopina, promised that any charges against Mr Trump will be fought vigorously.

Media reports have said that Mr Trump will be facing more than 30 charges related to business fraud over a $130,000 (£105,000) pay-out to Stormy Daniels in 2016. Sources familiar with the case have said that the former president is being charged with falsifying business records in the first degree – a felony under US law. Details of the charges remain under seal, and Mr Tacopina has said that he himself has not yet seen them.

Mr Trump has been reportedly meeting with his advisors and legal team to plan his defence ahead of his flight to New York on Monday. Law enforcement officials have said that he will be escorted by members of the US Secret Service on his way to the city. He is expected to hand himself over to authorities on Tuesday, with a hearing due to take place at 14:15 (19:15 BST) in Manhattan.

Judge Juan Merchan will preside over Mr Trump’s criminal arraignment. The Manhattan courthouse will be closed in the afternoon for the hearing, his lawyer said. The former president will not be handcuffed, but other details of the arraignment are still a mystery.

Law enforcement officials – including the FBI, New York City court officers and Secret Service – have been preparing for Tuesday. The New York Police Department has also reportedly intensified security measures in anticipation of any protests around the city. A rally for Mr Trump with Republican House Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene has been scheduled for noon on Tuesday in New York, calling for supporters to join in “peaceful protest” against the indictment.

Later on Tuesday, Mr Trump is scheduled to return to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida after his hearing, where he has said he will make an address at 20:15 EST. Around a dozen of his supporters had gathered outside Mr Trump’s Florida home over the weekend, waving “Trump 2024” flags and banners at passing motorists.

Mr Trump has accused the Manhattan district attorney of “political prosecution”. He is the first US president – sitting or former – to be charged with a criminal felony. Other Republicans, including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, have spoken out in support of him and have also accused the district attorney of weaponising the criminal justice system to influence the outcome of next year’s presidential election. In response, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the charges had been brought by citizens of New York doing their civic duty – and neither the former president nor Congress could interfere with proceedings.

Donald Trump is preparing for a legal battle as he faces charges related to hush money payments made to a porn star. The former US president is set to fly to New York City from his Mar-a-Lago home on Monday for his court hearing, and then return to Florida afterwards. His lawyer, Joe Tacopina, has promised that any charges against Mr Trump will be fought vigorously. Media reports have said that he will be facing more than 30 charges related to business fraud over a $130,000 (£105,000) pay-out to Stormy Daniels in 2016.

Sources familiar with the case have said that Mr Trump is being charged with falsifying business records in the first degree – a felony under US law. Details of the charges remain under seal, and Mr Tacopina has said that he himself has not yet seen them. The former president has been reportedly meeting with his advisors and legal team to plan his defence ahead of his flight to New York on Monday.

Law enforcement officials have said that Mr Trump will be escorted by members of the US Secret Service on his way to New York City. He is expected to hand himself over to authorities on Tuesday, with a hearing due to take place at 14:15 (19:15 BST) in Manhattan. Judge Juan Merchan will preside over Mr Trump’s criminal arraignment, and the Manhattan courthouse will be closed in the afternoon for the hearing.

The former president will not be handcuffed, but other details of the arraignment are still a mystery. Law enforcement officials – including the FBI, New York City court officers and Secret Service – have been preparing for Tuesday. The New York Police Department has also reportedly intensified security measures in anticipation of any protests around the city.

A rally for Mr Trump with Republican House Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene has been scheduled for noon on Tuesday in New York, calling for supporters to join in “peaceful protest” against the indictment. Later on Tuesday, Mr Trump is scheduled to return to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida after his hearing, where he has said he will make an address at 20:15 EST.

Mr Trump has accused the Manhattan district attorney of “political prosecution”. He is the first US president – sitting or former – to be charged with a criminal felony. Other Republicans, including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, have spoken out in support of him and have also accused the district attorney of weaponising the criminal justice system to influence the outcome of next year’s presidential election. In response, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said that citizens of New York were doing their civic duty by bringing charges against Mr Trump – and neither he nor Congress could interfere with proceedings.

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