What happens next after Trump’s arraignment and arrest
Happy new week!
It seems we are still living in unprecedented times. My moment of the week is Former President Donald Trump’s indictment.
Summary of what happened
Donald Trump has given a defiant address to his supporters after becoming the first former US president to face criminal charges
Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 criminal charges during a historic court hearing in New York on Tuesday
He returned to Florida immediately after where he told an audience that the case was "an insult to our country"
"Our country is going to hell," he said, listing all the ways that he claims to have been persecuted
Trump also lashed out at the judge and prosecutors and claimed the case against him was politically-motivated
The 2024 White House contender is accused of falsifying business records to cover up hush payments to two women during his 2016 election run
Trump's team will have until August to file any motions against the case. The next court hearing is set for December
What happens next?
The People of New York v. Donald Trump is only just beginning. After Tuesday’s arraignment, the legal process that unfolds could take months, if not much longer. Here’s what to expect next.
Discovery handed over to the defence
Within 15 days of arraignment, the prosecution must turn over all the evidence gathered as part of the investigation (known as “discovery”) to the defense team. That includes the minutes from the grand jury process, the testimony from every witness (sometimes with redactions), law enforcement notes of anyone interviewed (even if they didn’t testify in front of the grand jury), every exhibit put in front of the grand jury to substantiate the charges in the indictment and other records prosecutors obtained through subpoenas (think telephone records, tapes, things of that nature).
Motions, motions and more motions
Trump’s defence team has already said it will quickly file motions in court to get the case dismissed before it ever reaches a jury. Generally, the defence side has 45 days to make motions after arraignment, but the judge has the discretion to grant it more time.
Trump himself has already floated the idea of filing a motion to transfer the case out of Manhattan. Motions to transfer venue are rarely granted, and the defence team would need to convince the judge that Trump can’t get a fair trial in the city because of pretrial publicity.
With the amount of national media attention the case has already generated — not only in New York — it’s going to be challenging to persuade Merchan to move it elsewhere.
“No judge is going to seriously entertain it. There’s no basis to conclude he can’t receive the same fair trial in New York as he would in Mississippi,” said Robert Gottlieb, a former assistant district attorney in Manhattan who is now in private practice. “New York jurors consider themselves smarter than everyone else, and they will analyze this case to death — red or blue.”
Other motions might hinge on arguments about the statute of limitations having expired, the nature of the charges involving federal campaign violations or other attacks on the sufficiency of the evidence.
The next court date has been floated as the 4th of December 2023 so the back and forths will continue until then. We will be watching.
Have a great week
M.T. Omoniyi
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