Former President Donald J. Trump was indicted by federal grand jury on Thursday on seven counts for mishandling of classified documents that was retrieved in Mar-A-Lago.
The seven counts currently remained sealed.
The 45th President has been indicted for the second time as he indicted by on a state level the first time by a New York grand jury related to hush money paid to former porn star Stormy Daniels.
“I never thought it possible that such a thing could happen to a former President of the United States, who received far more votes than any sitting President in the History of our Country, and is currently leading, by far, all Candidates, both Democrat and Republican, in Polls of the 2024 Presidential Election,” said Trump on Truth Social. “I AM AN INNOCENT MAN!”
He is due to appear in a US district court in Miami, Florida at 3:00 PM ET on Tuesday.
This comes at a time that the former president is currently leading the polls in the GOP primary in a field of candidates.
The federal trial may occur in Miami as FBI agents retrieved classified documents from his Mar-A-Lago estate in Palm Beach last summer.
Attorney General Merrick Garland signed the warrant to search the former president’s home.
Former Vice President Mike Pence has disagreed with the investigation in the handling of classified documents.
“I think it would send a terrible message to the wider world,” said Pence . “But again, let me be very clear: No one’s above the law. And if the Department of Justice chooses to move forward with an indictment, I would hope that it would meet the very high threshold for the unprecedented action of a federal indictment against the former president.”
Trump is currently not the only candidate in the 2024 race for the White House with legal battles but is the only one in the Republican Party.
Netflix Tiger King star Joe Exotic is running for president for the Democratic nomination from jail with legal implications as he was found guilty on counts 17 federal charges of animal abuse and two counts of attempted murder-for-hire for 22 years in prison.
Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado, is currently contesting the murder-for-hire counts. The alleged hit man, Allen Glover, admitted to perjury to the jury during his testimony.
Trump declined to pardon Exotic in his last days in office.
Special Counsel Jack Smith notified Trump that he was the target of the mishandling of classified documents investigation in a letter from his office.
Smith was appointed by Garland to handle the Trump cases involving classified documents and January 6.
The Trump campaign has put out a statement in response to the indictment from the special counsel.
“Today’s act of open legal ‘warfare’ by the highly politicized and partisan Department of Injustice, has taken things to a new level, and set a dangerous precedent,” the Trump campaign said. “By politically weaponizing the DOJ, the Biden administration and their henchmen in the Swamp are now conducting an all-out prosecution of the leader of the current administration’s political opposition.”
“I am an innocent man,” said Trump on Truth Social. “The Biden administration is totally corrupt. This is election interference & a continuation of the greatest witch hunt of all time. Make America Great Again!!!”
Edited by Sterling Creighton Beard and Virginia Van Zandt
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