Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to be arrested and arraigned Tuesday after a grand jury voted to indict him in connection with a hush money payment made during the 2016 campaign.
Here’s what to expect:
Trump traveled from his home in Florida on Monday to New York City where he’s expected to be processed and have his mugshot and fingerprints taken.
“On Tuesday morning I will be going to, believe it or not, the Courthouse,” Trump wrote on his social media site. “America was not supposed to be this way!”
The charges Trump faces have not been released, but Trump will learn them during his arraignment. Trump attorney Joe Tacopina told Fox News host Sean Hannity he didn’t know what charges to expect.
“We don’t really know what’s going to happen Tuesday because logistically this has never happened before,” Tacopina said. “We have the Secret Service involved in an arraignment. When have you seen that before? Never.”
Trump attorney Susan Necheles said Trump does not want cameras in the courtroom because “it will create a circus-like atmosphere,” as well as “raise security concerns,” according to ABC News, which filed motions with the court along with other news organizations for media access to cover and record the hearing.
Trump warned in a social media post of “potential death and destruction” if he was charged, and the New York Police Department has been on alert ahead of Trump’s visit.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said she plans to protest Tuesday. New York City Mayor Eric Adams told people coming to the city to protest to control themselves.
“New York City is our home, not a playground for your misplaced anger,” Adams said during a press conference Monday.
Trump’s campaign has fundraised off the indictment, and current and potential Republican opponents have sided with him.
Candidate and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told Fox News she believed it was political prosecution that was more about revenge than justice.
Potential 2024 candidates Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence also weighed in. DeSantis called it “un-American” and Pence said it was an “outrage.”
President Joe Biden has said he has no comment.
Trump is the first former U.S. president to be charged with a crime. Though unprecedented in U.S. history, leaders from countries including France, South Korea and Israel have been jailed or prosecuted before.
Trump could face additional charges in connection with an investigation into his attempt to overthrow the 2020 election results in Georgia. The Justice Department is also investigating Trump.
A 60% majority of U.S. adults approve of the decision to indict Trump, including 94% of Democrats, 62% of independents and 21% of Republicans, according to a CNN poll released Monday.