The key takeaways from Donald Trump's day in court

Trump appeared in court on Tuesday on 34 counts of falsifying business records. Credit: AP

For the first time in history, a former US president has appeared in court as a criminal defendant.

Donald Trump gave himself up to police on Tuesday after being indicted by a New York grand jury on charges related to hush-money payments at the height of the 2016 presidential election.

Trump, who is running for president 2024, pleaded not guilty to 34 felony charges in a Manhattan courtroom.

With plenty of drama in and out the courtroom, and of course on Twitter, here's what happened during Trump's day in court:

Why is Trump in court and what are the criminal charges?

Before yesterday, all that was known was Trump had been charged in relation to hush-money payments, including one given to porn actor Stormy Daniels.

In court, Trump and the rest of the world got to see the 34 charges of falsifying business records for the first time.

A break down of the main alleged issues are:

  • 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree

  • Trump conspiring to undermine the 2016 presidential election by trying to suppress information that could harm his candidacy

  • Concealing the true nature of the hush-money payments

  • Payment to two women - including a porn actor - who claimed they had sexual encounters with him years earlier.

  • Payment to a doorman at Trump Tower who claimed to have a story about a child Trump fathered out of wedlock

Will Trump go to prison?

If convicted of any one of the 34 charges, Trump could face a maximum of four years in prison, but he'd likely be sentenced to less.

What did Trump do in court?Not a huge amount really - Trump sat at the defence table and spoke only to tell the judge he was pleading “not guilty” and had been advised of his rights. Before appearing in court Trump was booked and fingerprinted behind closed doors but his mugshot was not taken.

Former president Donald Trump is leading the Republican nomination race. Credit: AP

What did Trump say outside court and should he even be speaking about this?

Before he appeared in court, Trump posted on his social media complaining the heavily Democratic area was a “VERY UNFAIR VENUE” and “THIS IS NOT WHAT AMERICA WAS SUPPOSED TO BE!” .

As his car carried him across Manhattan, he posted that the experience was “SURREAL.”

He has claimed the Manhattan case and three separate investigations from the Justice Department and prosecutors in Georgia, are politically motivated.

Appearing in front of several hundred supporters at his Florida home, Mar-a-Lago, Tuesday night, Trump repeated these claims and attacked those investigating him.

“The only crime that I have committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it," Trump said.

In recent weeks, he called on his supporters to protest and warned about “potential death and destruction” if he were charged.

The judge on Tuesday did not impose a gag order but warned Trump to avoid making comments that were inflammatory or could cause civil unrest.

Can Trump still run for president?

Trump is running for president in 2024 and is actually using the controversy to galvanize his supporters.

In US law there is no reason someone charged with a crime or serving a prison sentence cannot run to be president.

Mr Trump appears to know this and has indicated he will still run for president regardless of the charges.

When is Trump back in court?

Currently the date is not set in stone.

Trump is due back in court in December, but his lawyers asked he be excused from attending in person because of the extraordinary security required to have him show up.

Prosecutors asked the judge to set a trial for January - weeks before the first votes will be cast in the 2024 Republican presidential primary - but Trump's lawyers asked that it be pushed to the spring.

Who is Alvin Bragg and what did he say?

Alvin Bragg is the district attorney, who has brought this case against Trump.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg speaks at a press conference after the arraignment of former president Donald Trump. Credit: AP

“We cannot and will not normalise serious criminal conduct,” Bragg said, speaking at a news conference after the court hearing.

The Democratic prosecutor said accurate and true business records are important everywhere, but especially in Manhattan, because it's the financial centre of the world.

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