Law enforcement prepares for Trump's expected arraignment
Fox News national correspondent Bryan Llenas reports on law enforcement’s preparations for former President Trump’s expected arraignment next week.
Former President Trump is expected to surrender to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office Tuesday to be arraigned in New York City court after an unprecedented grand jury indictment, defusing a potential controversy over any request by prosecutors to extradite Trump from his Florida home.
Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury Thursday after a years-long investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, making Trump the first former president in history to be indicted.
He is expected to be arraigned before the judge presiding over the case in a New York City courtroom Tuesday afternoon.
Trump is expected to surrender without handcuffs after making arrangements with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office to do so, Fox News has learned. Detectives within the office are expected to handle the arrest of the former president.
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Donald Trump is the first former president to be indicted on criminal charges. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
Law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Secret Service, New York Police Department, FBI, New York State court officers and the DA's office met Friday afternoon to finalize details about the logistics and security of Trump's arrest. The Secret Service will determine how Trump is brought in.
The moves defuse a potential situation in which prosecutors need to request Trump’s extradition from his home at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.
A source told Fox News Digital Friday that DA Alvin Bragg had requested Trump’s surrender to his office by Friday, the day after the indictment, but that timeline had been extended due to arrangements needed to be made by the Secret Service.
Typically, a defendant who surrenders in a nonviolent case would surrender to a central booking location, legal experts have explained. However, special accommodations were expected because this indictment involves a former U.S. president.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis added another wrinkle to the situation Friday when he announced the state "will not assist in an extradition request given the questionable circumstances at issue with this Soros-backed Manhattan prosecutor and his political agenda."
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"The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head," DeSantis tweeted Thursday. "It is un-American."
Bragg has been investigating Trump over alleged hush money payments leading up to the 2016 presidential election.
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These include a $130,000 payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and a $150,000 payment made to former Playboy model Karen McDougal, Fox News Digital has learned.
On Thursday, Bragg's office issued a statement confirming the indictment.
"This evening we contacted Mr. Trump’s attorney to coordinate his surrender to the Manhattan DA’s Office for arraignment on a Supreme Court indictment, which remains under seal," a spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney's Office said. "Guidance will be provided when the arraignment date is selected."
District Attorney Alvin Bragg speaks at a press conference to discuss charges against Steve Bannon in New York Sept. 8, 2022. (Alex Kent/AFP via Getty Images)
Trump reacted by slamming Bragg for his "obsession" with trying to "get Trump," while warning the move to charge a former U.S. president will "backfire."
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"This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history," Trump said in a statement. "From the time I came down the golden escalator at Trump Tower, and even before I was sworn in as your President of the United States, the Radical Left Democrats — the enemy of the hard-working men and women of this Country — have been engaged in a Witch-Hunt to destroy the Make America Great Again movement."
Fox News' Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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