Trump may be issued gag order by NYC judge: Report
The former president could be issued a gag order by a New York City judge, which would hinder remarks he is supposed to make Tuesday night following the arraignment.
Former President Trump on Monday hired white collar defense attorney Todd Blanche to be part of his legal team ahead of his Tuesday arraignment in New York City, Fox News Digital has learned.
Blanche, a former partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, will serve as a defense attorney in the case brought against the former president by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Blanche joins Trump defense attorney Joe Tacopina and other lawyers working on the case for Trump.
The source told Fox News Digital that Blanche will be "additional firepower" to the Trump legal team.
Blanche previously represented Paul Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman. Manafort was charged as part of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation in 2019, and pleaded guilty to foreign lobbying and witness tampering, as well as tax fraud and conspiracy.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a 2024 election campaign rally in Waco, Texas, March 25, 2023. - Trump held the rally at the site of the deadly 1993 standoff between an anti-government cult and federal agents. ((Photo by SUZANNE CORDEIRO/AFP via Getty Images))
Trump’s expected arraignment comes after the former president of the United States, and the leading Republican presidential candidate for 2024, was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury Thursday after a years-long investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
The former president traveled from Palm Beach, Fla. to New York City Monday ahead of his arraignment Tuesday. Trump is expected to arrive at the courthouse in lower Manhattan at 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, and is expected to be arraigned at 2:15p.m.
Sources familiar told Fox News that Trump will not be in handcuffed when he surrenders. It is unclear if the former president will take a mug shot.
The charges Trump is facing are still unclear, as the indictment remains under seal until the arraignment.
UP IN AIR: TRUMP FORCE ONE EN ROUTE TO NYC ARRAIGNMENT AMID UNCERTAIN FUTURE FOR FORMER PRESIDENT
Former U.S. President Donald Trump boards his plane, at the Palm Beach International Airport, after his indictment by a Manhattan grand jury following a probe into hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels, in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., April 3, 2023. (REUTERS/Marco Bello)
The indictment comes after Bragg had been investigating Trump for hush money payments made leading up to the 2016 presidential election.
These include the $130,000 payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, and the $150,000 payment made to former Playboy model Karen McDougal.
Those payments had been investigated by the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York and by the Federal Election Commission.
DEFIANT TRUMP ANNOUNCES FLORIDA EVENT JUST HOURS AFTER TUESDAY'S COURT APPEARANCE IN NEW YORK
Trump was indicted after a years-long investigation out of the office of Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg. ((Photo by ALEX KENT/AFP via Getty Images))
Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York opted out of charging Trump related to the Daniels payment in 2019. The Federal Election Commission also tossed its investigation into the matter in 2021.
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The investigation into Trump was opened in 2019 by then-Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance. The probe was focused on possible bank, insurance and tax fraud. The case initially involved financial dealings of Trump’s Manhattan properties, including his flagship Fifth Avenue building, Trump Tower, and the valuation of his 213-acre estate Seven Springs in Westchester.
Last year, the investigation led to tax fraud charges against The Trump Organization and its finance chief Allen Weisselberg.
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