Former President Donald Trump was charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, supposedly on his involvement with a hush money payment to a porn star named Stormy Daniels. Daniels came out and announced she had an affair with Trumpbutgot paid off to keep quiet. 

   Donald Trump is the first American president, current or former, to be charged with any crime. On Thursday March 30th, 2023, Trump was indicted after an ongoing five year investigation by the Manhattan district attorney’s office. If a trail will occur, it most likely won’t be at least until next year since the legal process is so lengthy. 

   On April 4th, 2023, Donald Trump hoped for a “painless and classy” arraignment court hearing where he planned to plead not guilty. On the other hand one of his lawyers, Joseph Tacopina, said before the hearing he wanted to file a motion to dismiss the case. Which is an attempt to see if the court would drop the charges all together. 

   On Trump’s social media, Truth Media, he wrote many times over again that he doesn’t believe he can get a fair trial in Manhattan where the former president was supposed to appear. He believes Manhattan is too liberal and he is too disliked there, so he suggested the trial be relocated to the more conservative borough of Staten Island.   

   The judge on the case, Juan M. Merchan set a deadline for August 8th, 2023, where Trump and his lawyers can file all of their motions and Prosecutors have until September 19th to respond. The next hearing for Trump will be on December 4th, 2023, where he will rule on the motions filed. 

   The prosecutors on the case expressed they would like a trial to begin in January of 2024, but Donald Trump’s lawyers said it was too soon and would rather a date later in the spring. Justice Merchan hasn’t set a date to start the trail yet. 

   On Tuesday May 9th, 2023, a civil jury ordered Donald Trump to pay writer E. Jean Carroll $5 million in compensatory and punitive damages for sexual assault in a New York department store in the 1990’s. The jury deliberated for less than three hours in the U.S District Court in Manhattan. 

   Although the jury didnt find Trump liable for rape because of lack of evidence, but he was found guilty for battery. Carroll’s lawyer made a statement after the hearing saying “No one is above the law, not even a former President of the United States.” 

   If Trump is convicted for either of the charges, more specifically the 2016 illegal hush money payment to Stormy Daniels, he will still be running for president in 2024. 

   Fox news host Tucker Carlson asked the former president if any legal charges would make him drop out of the 2024 Republican presidential race and he replied with “No, I’d never drop out,” he continued, “That’s not my thing. I wouldn’t do it.”

   The future of Donald Trump is still unclear, and whatever happens now depends on the court. If he is convicted and serves time, why should he still be allowed to run for president?