Donald Trump switches up legal team before arraignment, will plead not guilty to charges
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On March 19, Donald Trump posted on his social media site, Truth Social, that he would be arrested in connection to an investigation by the Manhattan district attorney. It involved the alleged misusing of campaign finances to buy the silence of adult film star Stormy Daniels back in 2016. On March 30, news broke that a Manhattan grand jury voted to indict Trump with his arraignment set for tomorrow (April 4).
On the eve of his arraignment, the former president made an addition to his legal team in preparation for the upcoming court battle. Todd Blanche, a white collar criminal defense lawyer, will be Trump’s lead counsel to handle the district attorney’s criminal indictment. Blanche joins Susan Necheles and Joe Tacopina, his lawyers during the initial investigation. Necheles told the New York Daily News that Trump will plead not guilty to any charges he faces.
Blanche resigned from his post as a partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, the oldest law firm in New York City, to take on the matter. “I have been asked to represent Trump in the recently charged DA case, and after much thought [and] consideration, I have decided it is the best thing for me to do and an opportunity I should not pass up,” Blanche said in his resignation email, per Politico.
Trump’s indictment remains under seal and the public will not know the extent of his crimes until he is arraigned. But sources close to the matter told NBC News that the former president could be facing upwards of 30 charges in the hush payment case.
The ex-“Apprentice” star has been known for making history throughout his life in politics, though not for the best reasons. He was the first president to be impeached twice and the first president to lose the popular vote twice. He’s now also the first former U.S. president to ever face criminal charges.
Trump is set to surrender to authorities in Manhattan criminal court tomorrow at 2:15 p.m. ET. Typically, the arraignment process includes being fingerprinted and having a mugshot taken. After being booked, he plans to fly back to Mar-a-Lago in Florida and address his followers at 8:15 p.m. ET.
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