Trump's Legal Troubles: Cliffs Notes Edition
Looking at the State of the Criminal and Civil Cases
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🎙The Mo News Podcast: Hawaiians worried about real estate developers trying to buy up burned out property; the one-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act, and what is IJBOL?
🗞 TRUMP LEGAL CASES: CLIFFS NOTES VERSION
Another grand jury, another indictment. Following the latest criminal charges in Georgia this week, we are taking a look today at the state of former President Donald Trump’s legal issues.
Trump has now been charged criminally four times in as many months. And he faces several other civil cases.
From election interference to mishandling classified documents to hush money payments, he faces multiple indictments in multiple courts, so we wanted to walk through his legal cases, charges and what to expect going forward.
BIG PICTURE
Trump has been indicted in two federal cases, one NY criminal case and most recently, one Georgia criminal case. He also faces three state civil trials within the next year.
In all, he’s been charged with 91 crimes—between the four criminal indictments.
He’s the first former president to ever be indicted. And in his case, several times over.
If he’s found guilty on all the charges and got the maximum sentence (VERY unlikely) he would be sentenced to more than 700 years behind bars.
Here is a guide to the various charges and trials he faces over the next year.
🏛 GEORGIA CRIMINAL CASE: ELECTION INTERFERENCE
Trump and 18 allies, including his former attorney Rudy Giuliani, were indicted in Georgia on Monday over their efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state.
Prosecutors charged him with 13 counts in a racketeering case— a statute normally associated with mobsters— saying he and other aides orchestrated a “criminal enterprise” to reverse state election results.
The charges include violating the RICO Act, which carries a 5-year minimum in prison, as well as soliciting a public officer to violate an oath and conspiring to impersonate a public officer. There are also charges related to hacking voting machines.
This started with the infamous January 2021 call then-President Trump made to Georgia's Republican Secretary of State after votes were recounted and certified, trying to push him to "find 11,780 votes.”
He has until next Friday to voluntarily surrender to authorities. The trial date is TBD. The prosecutor is hoping to start it within 6 months.
Trump said he is a preparing a major report for release at a press conference Monday that will exonerate him from any crimes.
Several of the other people indicted want to move the case to federal court, including Giuliani and former WH Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. They argue the constitution’s ‘Supremacy clause’ prevents state interference in federal matters, and they were working for a federal official, Trump, at the time. Legal experts are split on whether that will work.
Rudy Giuliani told a conservative talk show host: "We're going to beat these fascists into the ground.”
🏛 FEDERAL CASE: NATIONAL ELECTION INTERFERENCE
In the other election-related case, Special Counsel Jack Smith charged Trump with four counts in federal court related to efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, leading up to the Jan 6 insurrection.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to those charges, including conspiracy to defraud the US government and obstruct official proceedings.
The four charges add up to a potential 55 years behind bars.
The prosecution has proposed a trial date of January 2, 2024.
🏛 FEDERAL CASE: CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS IN FLORIDA
Jack Smith is the Special Counsel in this case as well. He charged Trump with 40 federal counts for storing dozens of classified documents (including ones related to war plans and nuclear secrets) at Mar-a-Lago and then repeatedly obstructing and lying to FBI and National Archives officials when they requested that he return them.
Trump has pleaded not guilty.
The most serious charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
The expected trial date is May 20, 2024.
🏛 NY CRIMINAL CASE: STORMY DANIELS HUSH MONEY
This was the first of the four indictments filed—a criminal case in New York brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. He charged Trump with 34 felony counts for falsifying business records related to hush money payments for porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election. The alleged goal was to hide reimbursements to his attorney, Michael Cohen, for checks sent to Daniels to maintain her silence about an alleged affair with Trump.
Trump has pleaded not guilty.
The expected trial date is March 25, 2024.
🏛 AND THEN THERE ARE THE 3 CIVIL CASES
The New York Attorney General has charged Trump and his business with fraud for allegedly inflating his net worth and assets by billions of dollars in order to attract better loan and tax agreements. The AG is seeking $250 million in penalties and to permanently bar the Trumps from operating a business in NY.
There’s also the E. Jean Carroll Defamation case.
Trump was already found liable for sexual assault and defamation in May, and was ordered to pay her $5 million in damages.
Following her victory, Trump said negative things about Carroll on social media and on CNN. She has subsequently asked the court to expand the scope of the first case, and is seeking an additional $10 million.
Finally, there is one more civil case set to go to trial in January. It involves an alleged pyramid scheme the Trump family promoted. Four investors say they lost hundreds of thousands of dollars investing with the American Communications Network after they were duped by the Trump family’s promotion of the telecom pyramid scheme on “The Apprentice” and at conventions.
⏳ SPEED READ
🚨NATION
📌 Power lines likely caused Maui’s first reported fire, video and data show (WASHINGTON POST)
📌 Maui land for sale? Locals concerned about being bought out by developers (USA TODAY)
📌 Mother of the 6-year-old who shot Newport News teacher pleads guilty to felony child neglect (AP)
📌 Prosecutors weigh second gun analysis in fatal shooting of cinematographer by Alec Baldwin (AP)
🌎 AROUND THE WORLD
📌 North Korea confirms status of detained U.S. soldier who ran across DMZ for first time, say he wanted refuge from ‘racism’ (WASHINGTON POST)
📌 On 2nd anniversary of Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, a look at the rights of women (CBS NEWS)
📌 China turns to well-honed playbook: Cut rates, hide data (WSJ)
📌 Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says she ate magic mushrooms during China visit (HUFFPOST)
📱BUSINESS & TECH
📌 Apple reverses course, moves iPhone ‘end call’ button back to middle in latest beta (CNBC)
📌 $500 million in Apple payouts will soon begin as part of ‘Batterygate’ lawsuit (GIZMODO)
📌 You're not imagining it: Here's why Halloween stuff is out earlier each year. (USA TODAY)
📌 Dunkin’ is releasing boozy versions of their iced coffees and teas (CNN BUSINESS)
🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
📌 Stevie Nicks Says ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’ made her feel like a “Ghost Watching My Own Story”. (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER)
📌 Chick-fil-A’s iconic chicken sandwich getting a seasonal makeover (FOX)
📌 WGA response to studios indicates no quick end to strike (VARIETY)
📌 ‘I’m not going to make $1’: The director of ‘Sound of Freedom’ breaks his silence. (LA TIMES)
🗓 ON THIS DAY: AUGUST 16
1954: The first issue of Sports Illustrated was released, and the weekly publication (later changed to monthly) became the leading sports magazine in the United States.
Henry Luce, the creator of Time magazine, was not a sports fan. But he believed in the early 1950s that the American media landscape was missing something: a Time-like magazine dedicated to sports.
1976: ABBA released their song 'Dancing Queen'
1977: Elvis Presley, the “King of Rock and Roll,” died of a heart attack brought on largely by drug abuse. He was 42.
2018: Aretha Franklin died at the age of 76.