NEW YORK — Follow along for live updates on former President Donald Trump, who is expected to surrender Tuesday at a Manhattan courthouse to face arraignment on charges stemming from hush-money payments made during the 2016 campaign to bury allegations that he had extramarital sexual encounters.
Watch ABC News live coverage below or here:
Here's what to expect
What happens in the hearing?
An arraignment is a hearing in which the indictment will be formally unsealed and the charges will be read aloud, though Trump could request to waive the public reading. He will be asked how he pleads to the charges and is expected to answer “not guilty.” And Trump’s attorneys Joe Tacopina, Susan Necheles and Todd Blanche, will work with the judge and the district attorney’s office to set a date for the next time he’d be back in court. The judge has ruled that news photographers would be allowed to take photos of the former president at the start of his arraignment.
Will he be arrested?
Technically, yes. When he's fingerprinted and processed, he's considered under arrest and in custody. But it won't look like what it does in the movies or on TV's “Law & Order.” He won't be handcuffed and he won't sit in a jail cell, in part because parts of the courthouse will be cleared out for his arraignment — and because Trump is a former president with Secret Service protection. Not all defendants are handcuffed before they appear before a judge for an arraignment, though some are.
If there is a mug shot, will it be made public?
It depends. In New York City, mug shots aren't generally made public. They are taken by the law enforcement agency that makes the arrest. There are situations where a judge could make the photo public in response to a public records fight. It could also get leaked, too.
Will Trump walk out of there?
In all likelihood, yes. New York’s bail laws have been overhauled over the past few years, meaning Trump would be released without bail because the anticipated charges against him don't require that bail be set. But it's possible that Judge Juan Merchan could decide that Trump is a flight risk and order him held in custody, with or without bail. Trump's lawyers would argue that the former president's ties to the U.S. are strong, and because he's a presidential candidate, he has no reason to flee and should be allowed to leave.
What happens next?
The judge and legal teams will set dates for the next hearing and deadlines for discovery, in which the district attorney’s office must turn over all its information to Trump’s lawyers, and motions, which include any requests to shift the venue or dismiss the case outright. That process usually takes months. Tacopina has said he needs to read the indictment first and research before he decides what to do on a change of venue or any motions to dismiss, though it would be very common to file one.
ABC10: Watch, Download, Read
