Trump indictment: What you need to know about the trial of the century

When the indictment in the Donald Trump trial is read in New York on Tuesday, the world will once again focus on the eccentric ex-president.

What does New York expect?

The city should endure hot hours. Numerous Trump supporters have announced they will demonstrate for the ex-president and against the allegations, which they say are purely politically motivated. Trump himself has also called for rallies.

In the run-up to the case, prosecutor Alvin Bragg became the target of threats and insults from the Trump camp. In this, the Democrat Bragg is accused of trying to politically remove Trump from the race before the next presidential election.

What about security in the city?

According to various sources, 35,000 New York City Police Department (NYPD) police officers are currently on duty or on call. That’s almost the number of the entire police force of the city. In addition, there are FBI agents and other state troopers. New York has learned from the mistakes of January 6, 2020. When the Capitol was stormed, only a small portion of the current contingent was deployed.

The sections of the road around Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue and the Criminal Court in downtown New York have been barricaded with iron scaffolding since Friday. A few hundred uniformed police officers and many in plainclothes secure the property. Police buses served as additional protective walls.

Trump had announced that he would be staying in his suite in Trump Tower on Monday before Tuesday morning’s court date. And so, from Monday morning, countless spectators and media representatives from all over the world gathered in front of the barricades. Tourists flocked to the action on one side of the street, curious New Yorkers wanted to see what was happening, and a few pro-Trump troops bellowed their frustration at themselves.

How will the day in Manhattan go?

Trump is expected to appear at the courthouse at 11 a.m. local time (5 p.m. CET). He will be fingerprinted, photographs taken and his rights explained. At 2:15 p.m. (8:15 p.m. CET), the indictment will be read and he will say whether he thinks he is guilty or not, according to Trump’s lawyer Joe Tacopina, the ex-president will plead not guilty.

His lawyers will then talk to the judge and will likely try to stop the proceedings. Prosecutors may ask for bail or other restrictions. Trump is not expected to be handcuffed, as is usually the case in such cases. No flight risk should be assumed. The next steps for the actual procedure are initiated.

What is already known about the charges?

Trump allegedly paid hush money to porn actress Stormy Daniels during his first campaign in 2016. For this she must remain silent about an alleged affair.

However, he is not accused of the payment itself, which is not illegal and which he does not deny, but of his handling of it. It may violate campaign finance rules. The exact charges will not be known until the reading.

What other procedures does Trump face?

Numerous other investigations against Trump are also underway. For example, during his campaign against Joe Biden in Georgia, he would have tried to manipulate the outcome of the election or manipulate the valuation of assets.

An FBI search of Trump’s Florida home made headlines last summer. The US Justice Department ordered this after Trump failed to hand over top secret documents containing sensitive content from his time in administration to the national archives as required by law, but bunkered them into his property.

He is also charged with conspiracy in connection with the January 2021 Capitol storm. If charges were also brought in this connection, this suit would likely carry the most weight.

What would a conviction mean in the current New York trial?

Article II of the US Constitution is very clear: even a convict can run for president and hold the office of president in the US. However, in the course of the Watergate scandal, the US Justice Department was already thinking about such a constellation.

Like constitutional lawyer Alexander Bickel, she came to the conclusion shortly afterwards that from a purely legal point of view, a president could probably rule from prison, but that is hardly conceivable realistically.

The 25th Amendment offers a possible way out. This stipulates that the cabinet can dismiss the president if he is unable to perform his duties. However, this article is mainly intended for cases where the president dies or is unable to perform his duties due to illness. What it means concretely if Trump, as a possible next president, has to serve a prison sentence, seems completely unclear at the moment.

Does the trial help or harm Trump?

In any case, Trump seems to be benefiting from the indictment at the moment. According to his own statement, he has received millions in campaign grants in the past few days alone.

It is currently unclear whether he will also benefit politically from the process. Much will depend on what exactly he is accused of and how the trial goes. It will also be decisive whether prosecution will follow in further and sometimes much more serious proceedings.

What is Trump’s party saying about the charges?

Senior Republicans face a dilemma: On the one hand, leading politicians like ex-Vice President Mike Pence or Florida’s Ron DeSantis want to run for president themselves. To do that, they would have to outperform Trump in the primary. However, if they opposed Trump now, they would alienate many potential voters. So play the game.

For example, DeSantis, Trump’s main competitor for the Republican nomination, has already announced that as governor of Florida he will not extradite his party colleague if found guilty.

US expert Claudia Franziska Brühwiler of the University of St.Gallen said in an interview with CH Media: “The support for Trump and reactions like DeSantis are purely tactical. No one there has any real sympathy for Trump.”