Trump indicted on seven criminal charges in classified documents case
Former President Donald Trump was indicted by federal authorities on seven criminal charges in relation to hundreds of classified documents that he kept at his Florida residence after leaving the White House.
Trump revealed the indictment himself in a series on posts on his Truth Social site, which he posted on Thursday night. He said that he was summoned by the court to appear on Tuesday in Miami.
NBC News confirmed the indictment shortly after. This is the second time that Trump has been charged criminally in the last few months. The Department of Justice is still investigating him, as well as a Georgia State Prosecutor. This investigation stems from his attempts to overturn his loss in the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden.
As the indictment has not yet been released, the specifics of Trump’s latest charges are not available.
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In an interview with CNN’s James Trusty said that the charges included false statements, conspiracy against obstruction and willfully keeping documents in violation of Espionage Act. If Trump is found guilty, he could face a maximum sentence of 20 years behind bars. However, the actual sentence will likely be less due to federal sentencing guidelines.
Trump is the first U.S. President, past or present, to have been criminally charged. The news of the indictment immediately prompted a Trump political action group to begin fundraising.
In March, he was indicted for falsifying records of business in relation to a 2016 hush-money payment made to a pornstar.
In a video released on Thursday, Trump called these new allegations “election meddling at the highest levels.”
Trump said on Truth Social: “I never imagined that such an event could occur to a former president of the United States.”
“I AM A MAN OF INNOCENT! “This is indeed a DARK DAY in the United States of America,” he said.
NBC News reported that a U.S. Secret Service spokesperson said Secret Service officials will meet Trump’s staff on Friday to begin planning security and logistics for Trump’s appearance in Miami on Tuesday.
Since last year, Trump has been at the center of a federal investigation into his refusal to comply with requests for government records including classified documents after he left office as president. According to law, these records must be handed back when a president leaves his office.
In August last year, FBI agents searched Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida for documents they thought would be found there.
The agents found hundreds of classified documents, as well as many other government records which he was required to return.
On Thursday, NBC News was refused comment by a spokesman of special counsel Jack Smith who is leading the investigation on behalf of the Department of Justice.
Trump wrote in his social media posts that the corrupt Biden Administration had informed his attorneys that he was Indicted, allegedly over the Boxes Hoax.
He complained that Biden hadn’t been charged, despite the fact a number government documents, including classified ones, were found in locations where Biden worked or lived as a private citizen.
Biden’s documents are the subject of a separate investigation by a special counsel. Legal analysts say that his situation differs from that of Trump, because Trump has refused to return records of the government despite numerous requests by U.S. officials.
A White House spokesman refused to comment on NBC News. He directed that question to the Department of Justice “which conducts criminal investigations independently.”
It was only known publicly this week that a federal grand jury was in Washington, D.C., hearing testimony and reviewing documents related to Trump’s investigation, while another grand jury was investigating his attempt to overturn 2020 election results.
Earlier this week, it was revealed that a second grand jury at the U.S. District Court of Miami had also been collecting evidence for the documents investigation. This disclosure increased the likelihood that Trump will be charged criminally in Florida and not Washington.
Trump has owned a Florida home for many years. In recent elections, he and Republican candidates for senator and governor have won Florida.
Ron DeSantis is the current governor of Florida and he will be running against Trump in 2024 for the GOP presidential nomination.
Trump’s attorneys met with DOJ officials including Smith in Washington, Monday. They reportedly argued that Trump shouldn’t be indicted.
Taylor Budowich was a top Trump adviser who testified before the Miami grand jury on Wednesday. NBC News, among other media outlets, reported later that day that Trump was formally notified he had been a target of a criminal investigation, a move that is typically made shortly before a suspect is indicted.
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