UPDATED 3:12 P.M.
NEW YORK/PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) -Former U.S. President Donald Trump landed in New York City on Monday after flying from Florida on his private plane to face charges stemming from a probe into hush money paid to a porn star, while his lawyers argued against allowing cameras in the courtroom.
With New York taking security precautions and the mayor telling any potential rabble-rousers to behave, Trump was due to surrender at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office on Tuesday and will likely be fingerprinted prior to appearing before a judge for an arraignment where he will plead not guilty.
Trump, 76, a Republican seeking to regain the presidency in 2024, is the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges.
Beefing up his legal team, Trump hired Todd Blanche, a prominent white-collar criminal defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor, to lead his defense, two sources familiar with the matter said. Blanche and other Trump lawyers on Monday urged the judge not to allow videography, photography and radio coverage of the arraignment.
In a letter to the court, they argued against allowing such coverage, saying it would “exacerbate an already almost circus-like atmosphere around this case” and “detract from both the dignity and decorum of the proceedings and courtroom.”
Justice Juan Merchan was expected to decide the matter on Monday.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office said it would leave it to the discretion of the judge, but noted that Merchan allowed a limited number of still photos prior to last year’s criminal trial in which Trump’s real estate company was convicted of tax fraud.
Before the indictment, a Manhattan grand jury heard evidence about a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the waning days of the 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump at a Lake Tahoe hotel in 2006. Trump denies having had any such relationship with her.
Blanche previously represented Paul Manafort, Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman, when Manafort was hit with New York state fraud charges after being sentenced to prison for federal crimes. The state charges were eventually dismissed and Trump pardoned Manafort before leaving office. Blanche also previously represented Igor Fruman, who was an associate of former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani.
The specific charges in the indictment by a grand jury convened by Bragg, a Democrat, have yet to be disclosed. Trump has said he is innocent. He and his allies have portrayed the charges as politically motivated.
Trump’s plane arrived at LaGuardia Airport in New York’s borough of Queens. Trump said earlier on social media he would go to Trump Tower in Manhattan after arriving in New York, then would head to the courthouse on Tuesday morning.
A motorcade of several vehicles earlier took Trump from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach to the airport in nearby West Palm Beach. Trump climbed out of an SUV vehicle before he and members of his entourage climbed a set of stairs to enter his plane, painted in red, white and blue with “TRUMP” in big letters on the side and an image of the American flag on the tail.
“WITCH HUNT, as our once great Country is going to HELL!” Trump posted on social media right before he departed.
‘OUR COUNTRY HAS FALLEN,’ TRUMP CAMPAIGN ASSERTS
Trump’s campaign raised $7 million in the three days after word of the indictment emerged last Thursday, senior adviser Jason Miller said. The campaign on Monday issued the latest in a series of fundraising emails, taking aim at the media’s reporting on his indictment.
Remarks attributed to Trump in the email stated: “Our country has fallen. But I’m not giving up on America. We can and we will save our nation in 2024.”
A court official said the arraignment was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Trump then will return to Florida and deliver remarks from Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.
The New York case is one of several probes Trump faces.
A few dozen Trump fans cheered at the Florida airport and along the route he took to get there, carrying signs and flags.
“Our country needs him,” said Cindy Falco, 65, of Boynton Beach, Florida. “He’s pro-God, pro-family and pro-country.”
Falco predicted exoneration, saying: “Nothing is going to stick to him.”
Trump’s detractors also weighed in.
“Isn’t it ironic that they couldn’t get Donald Trump for all of the crimes he’s committed, except payment to a porn star?” said New Jersey resident Robert Hoatson, 71, outside of Trump Tower. “It always comes down to the lowliest of charges.”
“It’s a terrific day. I hope it goes well and that he is eventually found guilty,” Hoatson added.
MAYOR CALLS FOR PROTESTERS TO BE ON ‘BEST BEHAVIOR’
New York police over the weekend began erecting barricades near Trump Tower and the Manhattan Criminal Court building. Demonstrations were expected at those sites on Tuesday.
Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, said there was no known specific security threat.
“While there may be some rabble-rousers thinking about coming to our city tomorrow (Tuesday), our message is clear and simple: Control yourselves. New York City is our home, not a playground for your misplaced anger,” Adams told reporters.
“As always, we will not allow violence or vandalism of any kind. And if one is caught participating in any act of violence, they will be arrested and held accountable no matter who you are,” Adams added, specifically mentioning Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has announced plans to protest.
“Be on your best behavior,” the mayor said.
Asked whether he was worried about unrest around Trump’s arraignment, President Joe Biden, touring a factory in Minnesota, said, “No, I have faith in the New York Police Department.”
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Palm Beach, Florida and Karen Freifeld in New York; Additional reporting by Tim Reid in Henderson, Nevada; Jonathan Allen, Jeenah Moon, and David Dee Delgado in New York and Doina Chiacu in Washington; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Howard Goller)
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NEW YORK/PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) – Former U.S. President Donald Trump is set to fly from Florida to New York City on Monday, ahead of his scheduled arraignment related to hush money paid to a porn star before the 2016 election, as security tightens in Manhattan.
Trump, the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges, is due to be arraigned, fingerprinted and photographed at the downtown Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday. His lawyers have said he will enter a plea of not guilty.
The specific charges included in the grand jury indictment have not been disclosed; Tuesday’s arraignment marks Trump’s first appearance in court and in front of a judge in the case.
The Republican businessman-turned-politician plans to travel from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach midday on Monday, arriving later in the day in New York and spending the night at Trump Tower in Manhattan before arriving at the courthouse on Tuesday morning, an adviser said.
A court official said the arraignment is planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Trump then will return to Florida and deliver remarks at Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.
New York police during the weekend began erecting barricades along the edge of the sidewalks around Trump Tower and the Manhattan Criminal Court building downtown, and some other courtrooms will be cleared.
Demonstrations are expected at those sites and police vowed to be prepared. “Officers have been placed on alert and the department remains ready to respond as needed and will ensure everyone is able to peacefully exercise their rights,” the New York Police Department said in a statement.
Other courtrooms on the courthouse’s higher floors will be shut down ahead of the arraignment as part of the security precautions, a court official said.
U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted an invitation on Sunday to join her at a protest near the courthouse on Tuesday, saying “They’re not coming after President Trump, they’re coming after us, he’s just in their way.”
TRUMP LAWYERS HOPE TO DISMISS
Before the indictment, the grand jury heard evidence about a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the waning days of the 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump at a Lake Tahoe hotel in 2006. Trump denies the affair.
Trump, 76, served as president from 2017 to 2021 and in November launched a bid to regain the presidency in 2024, aiming to deny Democratic President Joe Biden a second term in office.
Word of the indictment, arising from an investigation led by Manhattan’s Democratic district attorney, Alvin Bragg, surfaced last Thursday. Trump has called himself innocent and he and his allies have portrayed the charges as politically motivated.
Joe Tacopina, a Trump lawyer, said on Sunday he expects more details surrounding the arraignment to be resolved on Monday and noted that the Secret Service, which protects former presidents, also has a role to play on Tuesday. Tacopina said it was unlikely there will be a “perp walk” – perp being shorthand for perpetrator – in which an individual who has been charged is paraded in front of the news media, because of security concerns.
Tacopina added that Trump’s lawyers will “dissect” the indictment once it is made public and will look at “every potential issue” to challenge, adding that he anticipates at some point making a motion to dismiss the charges.
“I honestly don’t know how this is going to go – hopefully as smoothly as possible – and then we begin the battle to right this wrong,” Tacopina told CNN’s “State of the Union” program, speaking about the arraignment.
Trump is expected to appear before Justice Juan Merchan, the judge who also presided over a criminal trial last year in which Trump’s real estate company was convicted of tax fraud. Trump himself was not charged in that case.
A court official said on Sunday that the judge has asked both sides to submit their positions on whether cameras and video should be allowed in the courtroom and will decide on the issue on Monday.
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Palm Beach, Florida and Karen Freifeld in New York; Additional reporting by Jonathan Allen, Jeenah Moon and David Dee Delgado in New York; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by Heather Timmons and Matthew Lewis)
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