In an unprecedented development, a grand jury in Manhattan has voted to indict former US president Donald Trump for paying hush money to Stormy Daniels—a porn star he was accused of having an affair with. Though the charges are yet unknown, Trump is the first former US president to face criminal charges.
In its report on Friday morning, the New York Times said that indictment is expected to be announced in the coming days. "By then, prosecutors working for the district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg," will have asked Trump to surrender and to face arraignment on charges that remain unknown for now. This historic development is likely to shake up the 2024 US presidential race as Trump seeks a rerun.
Senior Republicans rallied around Trump after the indictment, and called it a “weaponisation of the justice system by the Democrats” and “political vendetta”. Trump, too, called it a political persecution. "This is political persecution and election interference at the highest level in history. From the time I came down the golden escalator at Trump Tower, and even before I was sworn in as your President of the United States, the radical left Democrats -- the enemy of the hard-working men and women of this country -- have been engaged in a witch-hunt to destroy the 'Make America Great Again' movement,” he said.
Mike Pence has described the indictment of his former boss an "outrage" and "great disservice to the country".
Daniels, the adult film star at the centre of the controversial case, took to Twitter to thank supporters. "I have so many messages coming in that I can't respond... also don't want to spill my champagne." Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, has said she received the money in exchange for keeping silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump in 2006. Trump has denied the allegations.
Indian-American Republican presidential candidates Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy have claimed that former US president Donald Trump's indictment in a criminal case was about "revenge".
What next?
Earlier this month, Trump posted on his social media platform that he is likely to be arrested. But according to reports, it is unlikely that the former president will be publicly arrested. The prosecutors are likely to reach out to the former president's lawyers to see if he will voluntarily turn himself in. According to reports, the Manhattan District Attorney's office has already contacted Trump’s attorney to coordinate his surrender for arraignment. A Trump adviser said that the former president is expected to surrender on April 4, Washington Post stated.
If Trump refuses to surrender, prosecutors will have to head to Florida, where he resides in his Mar-a-Lago estate, and seek permission to extradite him to New York. Trump's Republican opponent and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis tweeted on Thursday that he would refuse to participate in any extradition efforts.
Following an arrest or surrender, Trump will have to appear for an arraignment hearing in Manhattan. Explaining the procedure, Washington Post stated that at the arraignment, a judge would determine whether Trump would need to pay bail or adhere to certain restrictions pending a trial — or whether he could be released with no bail or restrictions.
Can he still run for president?
Though a former president has never been convicted of a crime before, he can still run for president. A presidential candidate could be indicted, prosecuted and convicted by either state or federal authorities, reports state.
In fact, some advisers think this could be good for Trump's campaign. As per a recent survey, Trump remains the front-runner in the 2024 Republican field, with the support of 44 per cent of Republicans ahead of DeSantis's 30 per cent support.
