NEW YORK (AP) — Every day, hundreds of people are taken into law enforcement custody in New York City. Former President Donald Trump is expected to become one…
— Every day, hundreds of people are taken into law enforcement custody in New York City. Former President Donald Trump is expected to become one of them next week.
Trump was indicted on charges involving payments made during his 2016 presidential campaign to silence claims of an extramarital sexual encounter, his lawyers confirmed Thursday. It’s the first criminal case ever brought against a former U.S. president.
Trump — a Republican who assailed the case Thursday as a Democratic prosecutor’s “political persecution” of “a completely innocent person” — is expected to turn himself in to authorities next week, according to a person familiar with the matter but not authorized to discuss it publicly. The person said the details of a surrender are still being worked out.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office said it had contacted Trump’s lawyer to coordinate his surrender and arraignment.
For any New York defendant, poor or powerful, answering criminal charges means being fingerprinted and photographed, fielding basic questions such as name and birthdate, and getting arraigned. All told, defendants are typically detained for at least several hours.
There can be differences in where the different steps happen, how long they take, whether handcuffs come out and other particulars. A lot depends on the severity of the case and whether defendants arrange to turn themselves in.
But there is no playbook for booking an ex-president with U.S. Secret Service protection. Agents are tasked with the protection of former presidents unless and until they say they don’t need it. Trump has kept his detail, so agents would need to be by his side at all times.
“This would be a unique outlier,” said Jeremy Saland, a defense lawyer and former prosecutor in Manhattan.
If Trump gets indicted, expect a carefully choreographed and relatively quick process and release without bail (as is common in New York) — and with a focus on security.
