Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty Thursday in Washington, D.C., after being indicted for the third time for conduct related to the 2020 election. outlet report.
Trump was indicted on Tuesday for “conspiracy to deceive the United States,” “conspiracy to corruptly obstruct and obstruct the Jan. 6 trial,” and “conspiracy to vote and be counted.” The former president appeared before Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya at the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Court Thursday afternoon.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, appointed by President Obama, preside over on the case. (Related: Biden administration indicts Donald Trump for third time)
“This is the Biden crime family and their armed judiciary who are trying to sabotage the 2024 presidential election in which President Trump is the undisputed frontrunner and leads by a wide margin. It’s just the latest corrupt chapter in the Department’s continued pathetic attempts,” the Trump campaign said in a statement at the time of the indictment.
Special Counsel Jack Smith speaks about a recently released indictment containing four felony counts against former President Donald Trump at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC, Aug. 1, 2023. Trump was indicted on four felony counts for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election. (Photo Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)
In July, President Trump announced that he had sent a letter informing him that special counsel Jack Smith was under investigation for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election. (Related: Jack Smith’s prosecution of Trump has big First Amendment problems, legal expert says)
Later that month, Missouri Republican Rep. Eric Burlison and a group of House Republicans sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland requesting documents related to Smith’s conflict of interest investigation. (Related: Exclusive: House Republicans Ask AG Garland to Submit Jack Smith’s Conflict of Interest Review Document)
“Mr. Smith has a track record of questionable political prosecutions, including the prosecution of former Republican Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, which was unanimously overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court,” lawmakers wrote in the letter. ing. “Additionally, Smith’s wife Katie Chevyny produced a documentary about former First Lady Michelle Obama and donated to President Biden’s 2020 campaign, raising concerns of a potential conflict of interest for Smith. It’s rising.”
Trump is now the defendant in two other criminal cases related to alleged hush-money payments and the storage of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. He is also under investigation for trying to overturn the 2020 Georgia election.
(This is a work in progress, more information will be added as it becomes available.)
