The indictment comes as several women allege they were paid hush money to keep quiet about extramarital affairs involving Donald Trump. Image source: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0
Former US President Donald Trump’s appearance in court today has caused a frenzy in New York City’s courts district.
Crowds of Trump’s supporters and anti-Trump protestors both swarmed the area surrounding the Manhattan courthouse, alongside swaths of press and police, all clamouring for proximity to the historic event.
The indictment comes as several women allege they were paid hush money to keep quiet about extramarital affairs involving Donald Trump, an act which prosecutors believe influenced and undermined the integrity of the 2016 election.
At the centre of the scandal is Trump’s alleged affair with former pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels.
The prosecution claims the $130,000 USD reported as “legal expenses” paid to Michael Cohen was, in actuality, reimbursement for illicit payments that were paid to Daniels on Trump’s behalf.
The charging documents said that Trump “repeatedly and fraudulently falsified New York business records to conceal criminal conduct that hid damaging information from the voting public during the 2016 presidential election.”
Donald Trump steadfastly refuted the claims of any illegal action on his part and pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
Trump refused to speak to reporters upon leaving court, but later went on to post on his own social media platform, Truth Social.
Trump criticised the district attorney for the money spent on the court trial and showed his contempt for the allegations against him, referring to the adult film star as “Stormy “Horseface” Daniels.”
Presiding over the case, Judge Juan Merchan acknowledged Trump’s right to free speech but warned both sides to avoid inciting violence or civil unrest with their words or actions.
Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg confirmed in a press conference the 34 felony counts faced by Trump relating to falsifying business records “with intent to defraud and intent to conceal another crime.”
“These are felony crimes in New York state, no matter who you are. We cannot and will not normalise serious criminal conduct,” said Bragg.
“At its core, this case today is one with allegations like so many of our white-collar cases. Allegations that someone lied, again and again, to protect their interests and evade the laws to which we are all held accountable,” he said.
