Trump's Legal Troubles: Did He Break The Law?

Former US President Donald Trump has been involved in several lawsuits and criminal cases, with some ongoing. Trump is the first former president in US history to be criminally convicted, having been found guilty of falsifying business records. He has also been charged with four criminal counts, including conspiracy to defraud the US and conspiracy against citizens' rights, in relation to his attempts to overturn the 2020 election result.

The Supreme Court ruled that Trump had partial immunity in the case regarding the 2020 election, setting a precedent that presidents are above the law. This has sparked concerns about the state of the rule of law in the country.

Trump has also faced civil lawsuits, including one from author E. Jean Carroll, who accused him of sexual assault and defamation, resulting in $88.3 million in damages awarded to Carroll.

The question of whether Trump broke the law has significant implications for the US political system and the country's commitment to the rule of law.

Did Trump break the law by mishandling classified documents?

In June 2023, former US President Donald Trump was indicted on 37 felony charges related to the mishandling of classified documents. The indictment was unsealed on June 9, 2023, and it alleged that Trump had improperly stored, shared, and refused to return sensitive documents related to national security. The documents in question were found to be stored in various locations across his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, including a ballroom, a bathroom, his bedroom, and a storage room.

The indictment also alleged that Trump had described a Pentagon attack plan and shared a classified map related to a military operation. Trump responded to the indictment by falsely conflating his case with a separate classified documents investigation concerning President Joe Biden. However, there has been no indication that Biden knew about or attempted to conceal the documents found in his possession.

The case against Trump was brought by the Justice Department and led by Special Counsel Jack Smith, a war crimes prosecutor appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland. The majority of the counts against Trump were for the wilful retention of national defence information, which falls under the Espionage Act. There were also eight individual counts, including conspiracy to obstruct justice, withholding a document or record, and making false statements.

Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges and denied any wrongdoing. The case was initially dismissed by a Florida judge, Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, who ruled that the appointment of Special Counsel Smith violated the US Constitution. However, Smith appealed the decision, and the case's future remains uncertain.

If the case is restarted, these charges could potentially lead to substantial prison time for Trump if he is convicted. The counts under the Espionage Act carry a maximum sentence of 10 years each, while the counts related to conspiracy and withholding or concealing documents carry maximum sentences of 20 years. However, the logistics of jailing a former president mean that a conventional prison sentence is seen as unlikely by many experts.

Did Trump break the law by trying to overturn the 2020 election result?

In January 2021, Donald Trump became the first former president in US history to be criminally convicted. He was found guilty of falsifying business records.

The US Supreme Court later ruled that Trump had partial immunity in another case, which alleged that he tried to overturn the 2020 election result. The court said that presidents have broad immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts they undertake.

However, federal prosecutors charged Trump with four criminal counts relating to his status as a political candidate rather than a sitting president. These included conspiracy to defraud the US and conspiracy against the rights of citizens.

Trump was also accused of pressuring officials to reverse the election results, knowingly spreading lies about election fraud, and seeking to exploit the Capitol riot on 6 January 2021 to delay the certification of Joe Biden's victory.

Trump denied wrongdoing and claimed the prosecution was politically motivated.

Did Trump break the law by inciting the Capitol riot?

On January 6, 2021, thousands of supporters of former US President Donald Trump gathered at a "Save America" rally to challenge the result of the 2020 presidential election. In a 70-minute address, Trump exhorted his supporters to march on Congress where politicians had met to certify Joe Biden's victory. The attack on the Capitol building began moments after he took the applause.

Trump was impeached by the House on a charge of incitement after the attack on the Capitol, but was later acquitted by the Senate. Some legal experts have questioned whether the Justice Department could successfully prosecute Trump for inciting the insurrection, given the country's broad free speech protections. To bring charges related to incitement, prosecutors would need to prove beyond a doubt that Trump intended to incite the crowd to violence and that illegal activity was imminent and likely.

Trump's lawyers have argued that his use of the word "fight" was figurative and accepted in public discourse. They have also pointed to his use of the word "peacefully" in his speech as evidence that he did not incite the crowd. However, others argue that Trump's rhetoric was grounds for impeachment, given his position as an elected official.

The House Jan. 6 committee has urged the Justice Department to consider prosecuting Trump for four different crimes related to his efforts to undo the 2020 election results and his behaviour during the insurrection. These include:

• Obstruction of an official proceeding
• Conspiracy to defraud the United States
• Conspiracy to make a false statement
• Inciting or aiding an insurrection

While the committee's referrals carry no legal weight, the Justice Department is conducting its own investigation and will decide whether to pursue charges against Trump.

Did Trump break the law by paying hush money?

The Stormy Daniels Payment

In 2023, former US President Donald Trump was indicted in Manhattan on 34 counts of falsifying business records. This indictment was the result of a years-long investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney's office, which began in 2018. The charges are related to a $130,000 payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during his 2016 election campaign. Trump's ex-attorney, Michael Cohen, made the payment to Daniels in October 2016 to cover up her allegations of an affair with Trump in 2006.

The Hush Money Payment

Trump then allegedly reimbursed Cohen $420,000, which included the Daniels payment, a separate expense, a $60,000 bonus, and money to cover taxes on the payment. Many of these payments came from Trump's personal bank account and were allegedly falsely labelled as legal services through a retainer agreement. Cohen pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance violations in 2018, as the Department of Justice alleged that the Daniels payment was effectively a donation to Trump's campaign that exceeded the legal limit on political contributions.

The Trial

Trump's criminal trial began in 2024 and lasted approximately six weeks. He pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, calling the case a "witch hunt". His attorneys argued that the reimbursement checks to Cohen were not unlawful, as Trump was paying his personal attorney using his personal bank accounts. However, the prosecution's key witness, ex-lawyer Michael Cohen, testified that Trump knew about the scheme to disguise the payment. After two days of deliberation, the jury found Trump guilty of all 34 counts of fraud under campaign finance laws.

The Sentence

Each of the 34 felony counts that Trump was charged with is punishable by up to four years in prison and a $5,000 fine. However, legal experts believe it is unlikely that Trump, as a first-time offender, would be sentenced to prison. The final sentence handed down to Trump was a fine, with legal experts predicting this as the more likely outcome.

Did Trump break the law by sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll?

In May 2023, a jury found former US President Donald Trump liable for sexually abusing advice columnist E. Jean Carroll in 1996 and awarded her $5 million in damages. The verdict was split: jurors rejected Carroll's claim that she was raped, finding Trump responsible for a lesser degree of sexual abuse. Trump's lawyer said he would appeal the verdict.

In January 2024, Carroll was awarded a further $83.3 million in damages in a second lawsuit, in which she renewed her claim of defamation and added a claim of battery under the Adult Survivors Act, a New York law allowing sexual assault victims to file civil suits beyond expired statutes of limitations.

Trump has faced multiple accusations of sexual assault and harassment. In addition to Carroll, two other women, Jessica Leeds and Natasha Stoynoff, testified that Trump had sexually assaulted them. Leeds said that Trump groped her against her will on an airline flight in the 1970s, and Stoynoff said that Trump forcibly kissed her while she was interviewing him in 2005.

In addition to the accusations of sexual assault and harassment, Trump has been implicated in several other legal cases, including:

• Conspiracy to defraud the United States by trying to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
• Obstruction of an official proceeding during the insurrection at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
• Conspiracy to make a false statement in relation to an alleged scheme by his allies to submit "fake electors" in battleground states won by Biden.
• Inciting or aiding an insurrection during the Capitol riot.
• Criminal conspiracy to overturn his defeat in the state of Georgia in the 2020 election.
• Mishandling classified documents by taking them from the White House to his Mar-a-Lago residence after he left office.
• Providing hush money to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about her claim that she had sex with him, which he denies.

While Trump has been found liable in some of these cases and is facing ongoing investigations and legal proceedings, it is unclear if he will be convicted and sentenced in any of them.

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