NEW YORK (Reuters) -- Donald Trump, the ex-president and frontrunner to be Republican nominee in 2024, appeared in court on Tuesday and was formally charged, finger-printed and had a mug shot taken in a watershed moment ahead of next year’s presidential election.
Trump was indicted last week, becoming the first sitting or former president to face criminal charges, over a case involving a 2016 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. He has said he is innocent and is due to plead not guilty.
Trump turned himself in on Tuesday amid tight security as demonstrations were expected for and against a man who has riled liberals and some global allies but is lauded by many white blue-collar and conservative Christian voters.
“We have to take back our Country and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social profile shortly after arriving in New York from Florida on Monday, urging supporters to donate to his campaign.
Trump’s lawyers opposed videography, photography and radio coverage, saying it would “exacerbate an already almost circus-like atmosphere around this case”, detracting from dignity and decorum.
Judge Juan Merchan late on Monday ruled that five photographers will be admitted before the arraignment starts to take pictures for several minutes until they must stop, with cameras allowed in the hallways of the building.
Trump was to return to Florida and deliver remarks from Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.
The specific charges in the indictment by a grand jury convened were due to be disclosed on Tuesday. Trump and his allies have portrayed the charges as politically motivated.
Yahoo News late on Monday said Trump would face 34 felony counts for falsification of business records. Citing a single source briefed on Tuesday’s arraignment procedures, Yahoo said none of the charges against Trump were misdemeanors.
Police over the weekend began erecting barricades near Trump Tower - where Trump arrived on Monday after flying in from Florida - and the Manhattan Criminal Court building, with demonstrations expected at both sites on Tuesday.