Former President Donald Trump is under siege in a number of legal jurisdictions that could harm his plans to run for the 2024 presidential election.
The inquiries could not only affect his public image, but also his ability to run for office or even stay out of prison.
On Monday, a FBI raid on his Southern Florida estate became the focal point for GOP-led discussions around a possible conspiracy against him and his party.
On Wednesday, Trump invoked a Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, declining to answer questions from the New York state attorney around a civil investigation into his company’s business practices.
But these are only a couple of pieces on the complicated puzzle of Trump’s legal affairs.
Let’s have a look at all the trouble the former president has gotten into.
Alleged Efforts To Reverse Election Results In Georgia
A grand jury in Atlanta is investigating possible efforts by Trump and his supporters to reverse Joe Biden’s 2020 election win in Georgia.
Fani Willis, the district attorney for Fulton County — where the city of Atlanta is located — launched an investigation in February 2021 following the November 2020 election, Vox reported.
A special grand jury convened in May by request of Willis. This is an investigative grand jury that is solely focused on whether the Trump campaign broke state law in trying to alter the election results.
A federal investigation could look into the same events separately.
One of the main causes for concern is a notorious phone call of Jan. 2, 2021 in which Trump said to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger that he wanted him “to find 11,780 votes” after it was made public that Biden had won the state by 11,779 votes.
As a district attorney working under state laws, Willis is not bound by the same constraints as the Department of Justice.
Under Georgia state law, soliciting another person to commit a felony can lead to a sentence upon conviction of between one and three years in prison. This could occur if the grand jury is able to prove that Trump was asking Raffensperger to tamper with the votes.
New York State Civil Inquiry On Corporate Fraud
New York’s Attorney General Letitia James is investigating Trump on a possible civil — not criminal — offense in connection with whether his family business, The Trump Organization, inflated the value of his hotels, golf courses and other assets to obtain favorable loans.
The investigation is trying to define whether certain financial statements approved by Trump showed a pattern of fraud or were merely naively exaggerated.
Trump’s main defense is based on the subjectivity of property valuations.
In order to define whether the company’s conduct was “fraudulent or misleading,” James asked for Donald Trump and his two children, Ivanka and Donald Jr., to be deposed. The younger Trumps already testified, and Trump’s deposition was slated for Wednesday.
Trump declined to answer the attorney general’s questions, invoking a Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
If the investigation were to move to a trial, The Trump Organization could face severe fines and be restricted from operating in the state of New York.
House Committee On Jan. 6 US Capitol Attack
A House Committee is investigating the events of Jan. 6 2021, when a multitude of Trump supporters invaded the U.S. Capitol in an effort to prevent Congress from formalizing Biden’s presidential win.
While not criminal in nature, the investigation is looking at Trump’s involvement in the rally, which is considered an attack against U.S. democracy. Its results could have severe consequences for Trump’s public image and political future.
Justice Department Investigation Of Jan. 6, Election Fraud
Federal prosecutors are involved in a wide-ranging investigation that is also assessing whether Trump tried to tamper with the presidential election results, among other inquiries related to the Jan. 6 attack, reported the Washington Post. From a federal angle, this investigation has the capacity to run parallel to the Georgia investigation.
The Department of Justice investigation is looking at multiple people responsible for the Jan. 6 events. In Trump’s case, he’s reportedly being investigated for conspiring to obstruct a government proceeding and potential fraud associated with altering election results.
Efforts by Trump to put pressure on the Justice Department to claim the 2020 election was rigged are also being considered.
Prosecutors are questioning several witnesses (including two top aides for former Vice President Mike Pence) before a grand jury.
The conduct of John Eastman, Rudy Giuliani and others in Trump’s orbit are also being investigated.
DoJ Investigation Of Classified Material Removed From The White House
Another Department of Justice investigation is looking at whether Trump took presidential documents from the White House to his Mar-a-Lago residency in Palm Beach, Florida.
In January, the National Archives recovered 15 boxes of material from Trump that apparently contained classified official files. In June, a Justice Department official visited Trump’s property in search of allegedly classified material that had been removed from the White House.
The National Archives is looking for presidential records from Trump’s term, as the Presidential Records Act provides that official documents created or received by presidents or their aides are U.S. property, and not personal property of the president.
The consequences for Trump for his actions regarding his handling of White House documents are not clear. Provided that proof is found that he wrongly removed documents from the White House, his charges would vary based on whether the documents were classified.
According to Reuters, becoming convicted of such charges could put Trump behind bars or impede him from running for office, but the case is still too early to speculate, especially when considering that any charges would be contested by Trump and his lawyers in court.
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