Trump Pleads Not Guilty to Federal Charges
MIAMI — Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to every charge in a 37-count indictment in which he is accused of both violating the Espionage Act and obstructing justice in taking classified records home with him after his presidency and then refusing to return them.
Trump’s arraignment in the federal court in Miami was his second arraignment this year, the first being in Manhattan on state charges related to business filings in New York.
He is the first former president — or candidate for president, for that matter — to face federal charges.
Despite the historic nature of Tuesday’s events, the media was largely constrained from covering them live.
There was no television or radio coverage from inside the courtroom, and Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman, who will preside over the arraignment, even rejected a media coalition request for limited camera access before the proceedings.
An overflow room with a video feed was set aside for use by reporters, but they were not allowed to use their cellphones or other electronic equipment once inside the courthouse.
Instead, reporters who did venture inside were forced to run outside the courthouse to provide updates on what was happening inside to their various news organizations.
Aside from Trump’s not guilty plea, the few details that were made known immediately were that he was placed under arrest and fingerprinted. However, no mugshot was taken.
Trump is expected to travel back to his home on a golf resort in Bedminster, New Jersey, where he plans to deliver remarks to supporters.
When he does, it’s expected he will continue his attacks against the prosecution, which he accuses of engaging in a “boxes hoax,” referring to the documents.
His latest claim, made on Tuesday via his social media platform Truth Social, is that some of the documents were planted at his Mar-a-Lago home by federal investigators.
Dan can be reached at [email protected] and @DanMcCue
