Donald Trump set to be arrested and appear in court

The first time in American history a former president will face criminal charges, Donald Trump is scheduled to appear in criminal court in New York City on Tuesday to be arraigned on dozens of accusations linked to hush money payments.

About noon ET, Trump is anticipated to report to the courthouse at 100 Centre St. in lower Manhattan for fingerprinting and processing. By 2 p.m. ET, when the charges against him are made public, Trump is scheduled to appear before Judge Juan Merchan and enter a not guilty plea.

For the New York tycoon-turned-TV star-turned-politician, whose career has careened from controversy to success for four decades, the legal issues, media spectacle, and salaciousness at the centre of the case constitute a new chapter. Many of Trump’s followers and critics contend that this time, in contrast to his bankrupted businesses or failed marriages, the future of American democracy is on the line as the former president increasingly conflates his legal troubles as an effort to unjustly deny him a return to power.

Security was tight in the courthouse and the surrounding neighbourhoods as the police department, court personnel, and Secret Service prepared for protests amid the historic arraignment of a former president because the failures of Jan. 6 were still vivid in officials’ minds.

News organizations from all over the world put up cameras close to huge lines of spectators, some of whom had camped out overnight in hopes of gaining a desired seat inside, as police closed streets and a helicopter circled overhead.

The judge decided to allow certain photographers to snap pictures, who will undoubtedly capture historical images that will come up on newspaper front pages, in election season advertisements, and in future history books, despite banning TV cameras from the courtroom.