Former U.S. President Donald Trump left the courtroom regarding the case after pleading not guilty to the 34 charges against him, refusing to answer questions from reporters while appearing sad and angry. The Manhattan court announced the indictment against him, titled "People of the State of New York vs. Donald J. Trump, Indictment No. 71543-23," consisting of 16 pages. U.S. media reported that the next hearing will take place on December 4 in New York.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg stated during a press conference following the trial that Trump falsified business records, saying, "He encouraged others to falsify his business records. He paid $280,000 to two women to buy their silence. He made an illegal payment of $130,000 to suppress negative information that would harm his 2016 election campaign. According to the indictment, the reason for committing the crime of falsifying business records was partially 'to promote his candidacy.'"
Bragg affirmed: "We will not tolerate these misdemeanors and crimes because Trump engaged in dangerous criminal behavior. There are hundreds of false records and shell companies, and bribery." Trump plans to deliver a speech tonight in Mar-a-Lago after returning to Florida, leveraging the case for electoral purposes, especially since he requested the mugshot to print on t-shirts to garner sympathy for himself, according to U.S. media.
Trump faces charges of falsifying business records and conspiracy in connection with alleged hush money payments to two women who claimed they had affairs with him.
While present in court, there were no cameras in the room. The charges resulted from an investigation led by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Protesters against and in support of Trump, as well as the media, gathered outside the courthouse. Congress members Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from New York, and George Santos, also a Republican from New York, briefly stopped to join Trump's supporters protesting the indictment but left amid the chaos. The Mayor of New York urged the crowds to maintain calm, stating, "The city will remain safe."
U.S. media reported that all charges against Trump fall under category "E," considered to be lesser offenses, the lowest level of criminal charges, with a maximum sentence of no more than four years in prison, resulting in his unconditional release. Trump appeared attentive throughout the trial; when the prosecutors began speaking, he sat with his hands in front of him, elbows on the table, listening. He suddenly reached out to grab papers near his lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, pulled a pen from his jacket pocket, and began writing briefly.
Donald Trump’s attorney, Todd Blanche, spoke outside the courthouse after the trial, stating that his client is "frustrated" and "upset." The district attorney in this case accused of turning a "completely political case" into a "political trial."
