It is a historical image. On Tuesday, April 4, Donald Trump arrived at the Manhattan Courthouse to receive a formal indictment from a judge. It concerns payments to cover up three embarrassing cases before the 2016 election. The former President of the United States is the first to experience such a legal event. He called the America-dividing appearance “surreal.”
Alvin Bragg, the prosecutor, announced in a press release that Donald Trump was indicted by New York courts because he “orchestrated” a series of payments to cover up three embarrassing cases before the 2016 presidential election. Trump Tower, which claimed to have information about a hidden child, was awarded $30,000 to keep it quiet; a woman who posed as a former mistress was paid $150,000 to keep a low profile; while a pornographic actress, most likely Stormy Daniels, collected $130,000 to cover up an alleged extramarital affair.
At the end of this appearance, one of his lawyers denounced a “sad” indictment and promised to fight it. Still according to the latter, the former tenant of the White House is “frustrated”, “upset” but “determined”.
There was no preferential treatment for the Republican. The New York prosecutor denounced Donald Trump’s “gross criminal conduct” and insisted that “the law is the same for all”. He hasn’t “stopped lying,” he continues.
For these charges, the former tenant of the White House could therefore have to face a trial, which could begin in January 2024 according to the judge, and thwart his plans to run for a second term, during the presidential election of 2024. Donald Trump, who did not say a word, walked free from the courthouse without any conditions and measures of judicial control. He is expected to return to Mar-a-Lago in the evening to deliver a speech, around 2:15 a.m. French time.
The first former American president to face justice, Donald Trump claims to be the victim of a “witch hunt” orchestrated by the Democrats and Joe Biden, who allegedly “robbed” him of his presidential victory in 2020. For the latter, this indictment is “not a priority,” according to White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre. The current president has not spoken on this matter.
In front of the courthouse, the situation was tense, between pro and anti-Trump demonstrators. From the first invectives, the authorities intervened. His detractors have, among other things, unfurled a huge banner “Trump lies all the time”.
