Following his indictment for handling top-secret information at his Florida Mar-a-Lago club, former President Donald Trump entered a not guilty plea to 37 felony charges during his historic arraignment in a federal courthouse in Miami.
31 counts of willful retention of classified records. These charges allege that Trump knowingly and willfully retained classified documents after he left office, in violation of the Espionage Act.
- Willful retention of classified records: This charge is a violation of the Espionage Act, which prohibits the unauthorized retention of classified information. The indictment alleges that Trump knowingly and willfully retained classified documents after he left office, including documents that contained national defense information.
6 counts of conspiracy to defraud the United States. These charges allege that Trump conspired with others to conceal the existence of classified documents and to obstruct the government’s investigation into the matter.
- Conspiracy to defraud the United States: This charge is a violation of Title 18 of the United States Code, Section 371. The indictment alleges that Trump conspired with others to conceal the existence of classified documents and to obstruct the government’s investigation into the matter. The indictment alleges that Trump and his co-conspirators took a number of steps to conceal the existence of the classified documents, including shredding them, storing them in a secure location, and lying to government investigators.
The 49-page indictment contains information about how Trump is believed to have taken sensitive papers to Mar-a-Lago after leaving office in 2021 and fought efforts by the government to recover the documents.
The former president described the indictment as “the most evil and heinous abuse of power” while speaking to supporters Tuesday night at his Bedminster resort in New Jersey.
Trump, who is the first former US president to face federal charges, was arrested and booked alongside aide and co-defendant, Walt Nauta, who did not enter a plea deal. The judge ruled that Trump could not communicate with Nauta about the case.
This indictment comes just months after Trump was charged by a Manhattan grand jury in a separate hush-money case.
The charges against Trump are serious and carry a significant potential penalty. If convicted, Trump could face up to 10 years in prison per count.
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