Trump’s Indictment Could Be Just The Beginning—Here’s A Timeline Of His Upcoming Legal Woes

Topline

Former President Donald Trump was indicted Thursday in Manhattan on charges stemming from hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016—it may just be the first in a string of legal consequences the ex-president could face, as a number of other investigations into his actions remain pending and several cases are set to go to trial this year.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a rally at the Waco Regional Airport on March 25 in … [+] Waco, Texas.

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Timeline

TuesdayTrump is expected to be arraigned in Manhattan on more than 30 counts related to business fraud and falsifying business records, according to CNN, though under New York’s bail laws he’s not expected to be held in custody and it will likely be months or longer before his case goes to trial.

April 25Trump will go to trial against writer E. Jean Carroll, who has sued Trump for defamation and sexual assault after he allegedly raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in the 1990s and then denied her allegations—the case is civil, rather than criminal, and Trump will have to pay unspecified damages if the court rules against him.

As early as MayFulton County District Attorney Fani Willis could bring criminal charges against Trump and/or his allies for efforts to overturn the state’s 2020 election results, following a years-long investigation—Trump has sued to block a grand jury report on the probe from being used and to kick the DA’s office off the case, and the court has asked the DA to respond by May 1, so it’s likely any charges wouldn’t be brought before then.

October 2Trump will go to trial in New York—and is expected to testify—in a civil case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James against the ex-president, his business associates (including his children) and the Trump Organization, which accuses them of tax fraud by misstating the value of their assets on financial documents for personal gain and could result in a range of consequences, including canceling business certificates for Trump’s businesses, barring him and his children from running businesses in New York and a $250 million fine.

January 24, 2024Trump will go to trial in a civil lawsuit against himself, his children and the Trump Corporation over an allegedly fraudulent multilevel marketing scheme the Trumps promoted, brought by plaintiffs who invested in it and then faced “considerable financial losses,” which asks for an unspecified amount in damages.

TBDThe Justice Department and special counsel Jack Smith are conducting two investigations that could result in charges against Trump—though it’s unclear when—one involving January 6 and Trump’s efforts to overturn the election results, and another involving Trump taking White House documents back to Mar-A-Lago and whether he obstructed the government’s investigation and attempts to get those documents back.

What To Watch For

More lawsuits against Trump. The ex-president also faces a number of other civil lawsuits that remain pending and could still go to trial, particularly multiple lawsuits brought by Democratic lawmakers and police officers holding him accountable for the January 6 attack on the Capitol building. While James’ lawsuit against Trump and the Trump Organization is a civil one, the AG said while bringing the litigation her office had also referred evidence of alleged fraud to federal prosecutors, raising the possibility Trump could face more criminal charges stemming from that.

What We Don’t Know

What the timing on any further charges against Trump will be, and how any trials and convictions will play out. Trump’s indictment in Manhattan will not stop him from being charged in other criminal probes, but Bloomberg notes it could create a busy court schedule for the ex-president that could cause trials against him to stretch well into the 2024 election season. That delay could be helpful to Trump, legal experts cited by Bloomberg said, with Catherine Christian, a former prosecutor at the Manhattan DA’s office, telling the publication, “Delay helps the defendant more than it helps the prosecutor. Why? Because memories fade, witnesses get annoyed.” While there’s still no indication on when federal prosecutors could bring charges against Trump in the DOJ’s investigations against him—if they do—the agency traditionally avoids making any major moves in investigations in the 60 days before an election, and legal experts cited by Bloomberg suggested prosecutors would likely want cases to be resolved before that point.

Surprising Fact

The charges against Trump won’t stop him from running for president in 2024 or serving in the White House if he wins, even if he gets convicted. There’s nothing in the Constitution that prevents convicted felons or people who have been indicted from serving as president—though Trump could be barred from voting for himself.

Chief Critic

Trump has railed against his indictment and other cases against him, calling the charges against him in Manhattan “AN ATTACK ON OUR COUNTRY THE LIKES OF WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE.” The ex-president has also called the Fulton County grand jury’s investigation into him a “kangaroo court” and a “strictly political continuation of the greatest Witch Hunt of all time,” defending his efforts to overturn the election results, and has criticized James’ civil lawsuit as “another Witch Hunt by a racist Attorney General.”

Key Background

Trump was indicted in Manhattan Thursday after allegedly reimbursing ex-attorney Michael Cohen for $130,000 in payments made to Daniels to cover up an alleged affair, which were made during the 2016 election. Trump’s payments were allegedly mislabeled as legal fees, raising accusations of falsifying business records, which could be a felony and punishable by up to four years in prison in New York if it’s done to cover up another crime. The indictment, which is still sealed and hasn’t yet been publicly released, followed weeks of speculation that charges were imminent, and Trump suggested without evidence he would be arrested on March 21. The indictment marks the first time a sitting or former president has been charged with a crime, but comes after years of simmering investigations into Trump, including his business practices and efforts to overturn the election. The Manhattan DA’s office, which brought the indictment, had been investigating Trump and the Trump Organization since 2019, and had already brought charges of tax fraud against the Trump Organization and its former CFO Allen Weisselberg. Both were convicted.