On Friday (June 9), the Department of Justice unsealed the 37-count federal indictment of Donald Trump – following an investigation into his handling of classified documents. The indictment outlines the 37 charges he’s facing and reveals some new details regarding the investigation and documents in question.
Of the 37 charges, 31 of them are for willful retention of national defense information – one count for each of the 31 such documents he allegedly stored at his Mar-a-Lago estate upon leaving the White House in January 2021. Of the 31 documents, 21 are considered ‘Top Secret’ and nine are labeled as ‘Secret.’
The six other counts include conspiracy to obstruct justice, withholding a document or a record, corruptly concealing a document or record, concealing a document in a federal investigation, scheme to conceal, and false statements and representations. If convicted, Donald Trump could face a lengthy prison term.
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For example, the ‘willful retention of national defense information’ charges carry a maximum of 10 years for each count – there are 31 counts. Likewise, the false statement charge carries a maximum of five years and the obstruction charges carry a maximum of 20 years each. These charges can add up quick.
In addition to the charges, several details of his handling of the classified documents have emerged and they paint a grim picture – one that not only shows him storing them at his home, but showing certain classified records to visitors who hadn’t been granted security clearance and leaving them in plain view.
Trump had aides pack the documents in boxes containing personal items before shipping them to his Mar-a-Lago estate upon losing the 2020 election. The documents included information about the ‘defense and weapons capabilities’ of the US and other foreign countries, and a ‘map of a military operation.’
When the Justice Department came knocking, Donald Trump ordered one of his aides, Walt Nauta, to move boxes and essentially hide the evidence from investigators. Trump made that decision without telling his attorney, who was prepared to comply with a court-authorized subpoena to search his home.
The Isn’t the First Indictment for Donald Trump
Donald Trump has been at the center of a lot of controversies since leaving office and has now been indicted on charges twice in the past three months. In April, Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 charges for his hush money payments to an adult film star, Stormy Daniels, who he had an alleged affair with in 2006.
All 34 counts are for falsifying business records, each of which can carry up to four years maximum behind bards – a total of 136 years if found guilty on all counts. Of course, that number will be much less if convicted. Between the hush money payments and stolen documents, Trump is facing 71 charges.
And that might not even be the end of it. There are currently two more criminal probes that could result in Trump facing more charges – both probes are connected to the 2020 election and his attempt to reverse the results. For now, Trump is scheduled to appear in federal court on Tuesday (June 13) in Miami.
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Despite facing 71 criminal charges, Donald Trump remains the leading Republican candidate for the 2024 Presidential election – he and Ron DeSantis (current governor of Florida) are the current front-runners. If Trump is convicted, it won’t be easy running for President from a prison cell.
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