Donald Trump is due to speak in Florida on Tuesday night after he is scheduled to be arraigned in New York on charges of making hush money payments to a porn star ahead of the 2016 election.
His campaign said he would “speak” at his Mar-a-Lago estate after returning from Manhattan, where he is expected to voluntarily surrender.
The 76-year-old politician is expected to be arraigned, fingerprinted and photographed in a Manhattan court on Tuesday as he becomes the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges.
Trump, the 2024 presidential candidate, faces multiple charges of falsifying business records, including at least one felony, in an indictment handed down by a Manhattan grand jury last week, The Associated Press reported.
His indictment comes after a grand jury voted to indict him for possible offenses related to the $130,000 (£105,000) payment to an adult film actress stormy daniels During the 2016 presidential campaign.
It was allegedly in exchange for Daniels remaining silent about an alleged sexual encounter she said had with Trump a decade ago.
The indictment itself has been kept under wraps, as is common in New York ahead of the arraignment.
On Sunday, Trump’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, said in a television interview that he would study the indictment once it was received and then chart the next legal steps.
Stormy Daniels paid $130,000 in final weeks of Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign
He said it was too early to discuss whether he would seek a change of venue or file a motion to dismiss, although defense attorneys typically do both.
“It’s too early for us to start deciding what motions we’re going to file or not file, we really need to see the indictment and get to work,” he told ABC’s This Week, adding: “I mean, Look, it’s a start.”
Trump will reportedly fly to New York on Monday and spend the night at Trump Tower in Manhattan ahead of his scheduled arraignment on Tuesday.
He is expected to report to court early Tuesday morning, where he will be fingerprinted and have a mugshot taken.
But Mr. Tacopina said he would not be handcuffed when he turned himself in, thanks to an agreement between Trump’s legal team and Manhattan prosecutors.
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Investigators will then complete the arrest paperwork and check for any pending criminal charges or warrants for the former president.
Once booked, Trump will appear before Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Juan Mercian for an afternoon arraignment.
Judge Merchant also presided over the criminal trial last year in the same court where Trump’s real estate company was convicted of tax fraud, although the former president himself was not charged.
On Friday, Trump lashed out at Judge Mershant, saying he hated him and had treated the Trump Organization “viciously.”
But on Sunday, Mr. Tacopina dodged questions about whether Trump’s team would seek to appoint a new judge.
“I have nothing against this judge. He has a very good reputation,” Mr Tacopina said.