Former President Donald Trump sits in the courtroom with his attorneys Todd Blanche, Susan Necheles, Joe Tacopina and Boris Epshteyn during his arraignment at the Manhattan Criminal Court on April 4 in New York. (Andrew Kelly/Pool/Reuters/Getty Images)
Following former President Donald Trump's arraignment, prosecutors said they expect to produce the bulk of the discovery in the next 65 days. Trump's team has until August 8 to file any motions and the prosecution will respond by September 19. Judge Juan Merchan said he will rule on the motions at the next in-person hearing, scheduled for December 4.
Trump attorney Jim Trusty said Tuesday he expects “robust” motions to challenge the case and hopes they can succeed in stopping the case.
If not, Trusty said he expects Trump’s attorneys will “figure out if there’s a way to try to push this earlier” than the December 4 hearing.
5:08 a.m. ET, April 5, 2023
What we know so far about Trump's indictment
From CNN's Devan Cole and Sydney Kashiwagi
(Rebecca Wright/CNN)
The Manhattan district attorney’s office has been investigating former president Donald Trump in connection with his alleged role in a hush money payment scheme and cover-up involving adult film star Stormy Daniels that dates to the 2016 presidential election.
The indictment by a New York grand jury was unsealed Tuesday, providing the public and Trump’s legal team with details about the charges against him for the first time. Trump on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to 34 felony criminal charges.
What's in the indictment? The investigation by the Manhattan district attorney’s office began when Trump was still in the White House and relates to a $130,000 payment made by Trump’s then-personal attorney Michael Cohen to Daniels in late October 2016, days before the presidential election, to silence her from going public about an alleged affair with Trump a decade earlier. Trump has denied the affair.
Prosecutors on Tuesday alleged Trump was a part of an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election. They allege he was part of an unlawful plan to suppress negative information, including the $130,000 payment.
The reason he committed the crime of falsifying business records was in part to “promote his candidacy,” prosecutors alleged. Trump is not charged with criminal conspiracy.
Each criminal charge Trump is facing relates to a specific entry among the business records of the Trump Organization, according to the indictment. Prosecutors accuse Trump of repeatedly causing false entries in the business records.
Trump's response: Trump was caught off guard by the grand jury’s decision to indict him, according to a person who spoke directly with him. While the former president was bracing for an indictment, he began to believe news reports that a potential indictment was weeks – or more – away. The former president has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in the matter and continued his attacks on Bragg and other Democrats following news of the indictment.
Next appearance: The next in-person hearing date for Trump’s case in New York is set for December 4 as of now.
