Here's everything you need to know about the former US president's case in New York, where he is facing 34 charges.

Donald Trump went before a New York judge for the first time since he became the only former president of the United States to be charged with a crime.


Trump pleaded not guilty in Manhattan criminal court on Tuesday to 34 felony charges of falsifying business records related to three alleged hush-money payments, including one to adult film star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign.

After an hour-long arraignment, during which Trump waved to people outside the courthouse, he was let go.

Here is what you need to know about the court system and what will happen next.

The indictment against the former Republican president was made public at the arraignment on Tuesday. This is the start of what is called "discovery."

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This is a time when prosecutors let a defendant's defense team look at the evidence that investigators have gathered against them.

The next hearing in the Trump case is scheduled for December 4. Before the trial, both the prosecution and the defense will be able to file a number of motions, which are requests for the court to decide on certain issues.

Such motions can include a request to drop all the charges, a challenge to a specific piece of evidence, or an attempt to change the venue or get rid of a judge. Trump's supporters have already said that his legal team may try to do all of these things.

Matthew Galluzzo, a former prosecutor in the New York District Attorney's office, told Al Jazeera, "They may ask for a change of venue because they think you can't get a fair trial in Manhattan." "This guy [Trump] doesn't have many fans in Manhattan."


Trump has also said that Judge Juan Merchan, who recently presided over a criminal tax fraud trial involving the Trump Organization, "hates" him and was "hand-picked" by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who is in charge of the case.

The courts in the state of New York have said that Merchan was picked at random.

"I could also see a motion to dismiss based on how the grand jury was put together," Galluzzo said, referring to the 24-person group that decided prosecutors had enough evidence to charge the former president.

"I think they're going to do everything they can to put this off as long as possible."

Will Trump be able to say anything about it?

Yes, for now.

Former federal prosecutor Ron Filipkowski said that US judges have the power to put a gag order on a criminal case. People who follow the law have said that could happen at any time in this case.


A gag order can mean different things, but Filipkowski told Al Jazeera that "basically, it's a judge telling you that you can't threaten, harass, or intimidate the witnesses in the case, the prosecutors, or the judge, either directly or through third parties."

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES