Trump Will Not Be Handcuffed for Court Appearance in NYC
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Donald Trump’s legal team has confirmed that the former president will not appear in handcuffs before a Manhattan court to face charges laid by district attorney Alvin Bragg.
Prosecutors “will try and get every ounce of publicity they can from this thing,” the former president’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, told CBS News on Friday. “The president will not be put in handcuffs.”
Although Trump will avoid the iconic imagery of being perp-walked in handcuffs, the former president will still be processed like any other individual that turns themselves in with mug shots and fingerprints taken.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office has denounced attempts by leading House Republicans who blasted the indictment as “misleading and meritless.”
“We urge you to refrain from these inflammatory accusations, withdraw your demand for information, and let the criminal justice process proceed without unlawful political interference,” General Counsel Leslie Dubeck wrote in a Friday letter addressed to Jim Jordan (R., Ohio), Bryan Steil (R., Wi.) and James Comer (R., Tenn.).
More from Bragg’s office to Comer, Steil & Jordan: “As Committee Chairmen, you could use the stature of your office to denounce these attacks and urge respect for the fairness of our justice system and for the work of the impartial grand jury…” https://t.co/sHghlfYdud pic.twitter.com/sIoHx1JVUM
— Jacqueline Alemany (@JaxAlemany) March 31, 2023
“As Committee Chairmen, you could use the stature of your office to denounce these attacks and urge respect for the fairness of our justice system and for the work of the impartial grand jury,” Dubeck added.
Last Monday, the NYPD erected steel barricades around Manhattan’s Criminal Court in anticipation of the former president’s indictment. Now Trump’s legal team has confirmed that the entire neighborhood will likely be locked down on the day that he surrenders to law enforcement authorities.
“I understand they’re going to be closing off blocks around the courthouse, shutting down the courthouse,” Tacopina said during the interview.
Steel barricades arriving outside Manhattan Criminal Court @CBSNews pic.twitter.com/aWESUZ01fU
— Robert Costa (@costareports) March 20, 2023
While the indictment remains sealed, sources familiar with the case have told the Associated Press that Trump is facing at least one felony offense stemming from the alleged hush-money payment made to Stormy Daniels, a former porn actress, ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Trump’s legal team has hypothesized that he may face as many as 34 legal charges, most of which stem from fraudulent business practices, although Tacopina still does not know the full extent of the legal case the former president.
“We know what the subject matter is, we know the basis of the charges. We don’t know the exact counts or how they’re formulated.”
Donald Trump will be the first former president to be indicted in American history and is expected to be released the same day he turns himself in.
