Donald Trump indicted: what possible sentence for the former president of the United States?

Thibaud Hue with AFP 08:38, 01 April 2023

This is a first in American history. A president has been criminally charged by the New York courts. This Tuesday, Donald Trump must appear in court to explain himself in the case of buying the silence of a porn star, Stormy Daniels in 2016. Indeed, the businessman is accused of giving her $ 130,000 just before the 2016 presidential election so that she would not reveal their alleged affair.

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What is Donald Trump risking? His sentence should be light. "At most, it will be four years in prison," Jean-Eric Branaa, a specialist in the United States at the University of Paris-Panthéon-Assas, told Europe 1. "But in the case of Donald Trump, we can imagine that there will be no prison since it would be a first time and that it would stop at a fine. As for the case of Stormy Daniels or Karen McDougal, two cases of sexual origin with a payment that would have been paid, a bribe to silence the two protagonists. But the loads must be much heavier. All this remains to be clarified, what will be done over the weekend or at the latest on Monday, since we should know the charges before Donald Trump travels to New York to be notified of the official indictment."

The Republican ready to "fight"

Donald Trump intends to "fight" without restraint to cancel the prosecution adopted by the New York justice, said Friday his lawyer. The former president should, according to US media, leave his residence in Florida on Monday to go to New York, his hometown. The former tenant of the White House, who dreams of winning it back in 2024, "was shocked" when he learned of his impeachment Thursday. "But he rolled up his sleeves and decided to fight," added the lawyer, announcing his intention to file "immediately" appeals questioning the legality of the prosecution, the exact nature of which has not yet been made public.