New coup de théâtre in New York: justice has postponed, perhaps until next week, the possible criminal indictment of former US President Donald Trump, report Wednesday, March 22 several media.

The 76-year-old Republican billionaire, who dreams of "winning" the White House in November 2024, must answer in the court of the State of New York of a case of payment of $ 130,000, just before his victory in the presidential election of November 2016, to an actress of X movies, Stormy Daniels, with whom he would have had an affair.

After years of investigation by the Manhattan prosecutor's office, its prosecutor Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, seemed on March 13 close to announcing a criminal indictment – which would be historic – of the 45th US president (2017-2021).

It was Donald Trump who, from his residence in Mar-a-Lago (Florida), triggered Saturday a media and political storm by writing in capital letters on his network Truth Social that he would be charged and "arrested" Tuesday. But prosecutor Bragg remained silent and nothing happened as announced by the former head of state.

Grand jury meeting cancelled

On Wednesday morning, US media, which is laying siege to the Manhattan courthouse, speculated that a grand jury – a panel of citizens with broad investigative powers that works with Prosecutor Bragg – will vote on an indictment in the afternoon.

>> READ ALSO: Prosecutor Alvin Bragg vs Donald Trump: the confrontation of two Americas

But according to the New York Times and the online media Insider, which rely on two judicial sources, the grand jury meeting on Wednesday has been canceled. Insider reports that the panel won't vote until the end of the week, even if it were to meet on Thursday. The grand jury sits on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Asked by AFP, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor declined to "confirm or comment on issues related to the grand jury".

And even indicted, Donald Trump would not be "arrested" immediately. It would take several days for him to appear in Manhattan. In this case, after having voluntarily "surrendered" to justice, he would be served with the prosecution and would be, possibly and symbolically, placed for a few minutes under arrest.

The former president, who has upset the balance of power in the United States since 2016, would then be photographed, fingerprinted and he could even be briefly handcuffed.

New York prepares

In the meantime, New York is getting ready. Quietly. New York Police Department (NYPD) handlers on Tuesday installed metal barriers in front of the courthouse and Trump Tower in Manhattan.

And, to prevent any risk of clashes in a city with a violent history, the NYPD warned that "the presence of uniformed police officers will increase in the five boroughs of the megalopolis", even if there is "currently no credible threat in New York".

Donald Trump, surrounded by several court files, assures, him, to have committed "no crime" and to be the victim of a "witch hunt" led by the Democrats.

The case of pornographic actress Stormy Daniels is legally complex. The New York justice seeks to determine if Donald Trump is guilty of false statements, an offense, or breach of the laws on election financing, a criminal offense, by having paid money to this woman, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, just before the presidential election of 2016, which the Republican had won.

For what purpose? To keep quiet about an alleged extramarital affair ten years earlier, according to the prosecution. The investigation had accelerated last week. Michael Cohen, a former lawyer and now Trump foe who paid Stormy Daniels, testified before the grand jury. The actress also cooperated with prosecutors and the same panel.

Donald Trump was also invited to speak before this grand jury, according to the New York Times and the Washington Post.

He had called on Saturday his supporters to "demonstrate" and gave them an appointment at the next presidential election on November 5, 2024 to "win" the White House.

So far, there have been a few dozen protesters in front of the courthouse and Trump Tower in New York, and in Palm Beach, Florida.

The authorities' main fear is a repeat of the violence of the storming of the Capitol in Washington on January 6, 2021, when Donald Trump, defeated at the polls in November 2020, had called on his supporters to challenge the results.

He still claims, baselessly, that victory was "stolen" from him by President Joe Biden.

With AFP

The summary of the week France 24 invites you to look back on the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news with you everywhere! Download the France 24 app