Donald Trump pleads not guilty to 34 felony counts in hush money case

Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to falsifying business records to hide damaging information ahead of the 2016 election.

The former president was charged with 34 felony counts in a Manhattan court on Tuesday.

The charges stem from a hush money payment to a porn star, Stormy Daniels, who says they had an adulterous affair.

Mr Trump, 76, denies criminal wrongdoing.

He is the first US president in history to face a criminal trial.

The charges stem from a hush money payment to a porn star, Stormy Daniels, who says they had an adulterous affair.

Paying hush money is not illegal. But the prosecution says Mr Trump falsified business records and broke election laws as he tried to cover up the payments.

Each of the charges carries a maximum of four years in prison, though a judge could sentence Mr Trump to probation if he is convicted.

The former president sat stony-faced and silent for the nearly hour-long proceedings before Judge Juan Merchan, speaking out loud only in response to the judge's questions and to enter his not-guilty plea.

While making their arguments, prosecutors told the judge Mr Trump had made threatening posts on social media.

Lawyers for Mr Trump responded that their client was frustrated by the case, which he believed to be a "great injustice".

Mr Trump's trial could begin as early as January 2024, Judge Merchan said, meaning the Republican - who is running for the US presidency again in 2024 - may be back in court just as primaries begin to select the party's nominee.

Mr Trump said nothing to reporters as he left court.

He returned immediately to his Florida home, Mar-a-Lago, on Tuesday evening, where he delivered brief remarks in the ballroom of the Palm Beach resort.

"The only crime I have committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it," he told the crowd.

The case hinges on a hush money payment of $130,000 (£104,000) made before the 2016 presidential election.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said this was arranged by Mr Trump to buy porn star Stormy Daniels' silence about an alleged affair back in 2006.

Mr Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen - who turned against his former boss - has said he made the payment at Mr Trump's direction.

Prosecutors also pointed to other payments they say were made via an intermediary on behalf of Mr Trump to suppress potentially politically damaging stories.

They allege $30,000 was paid to buy the silence of a doorman at Trump Tower who claimed Mr Trump had a lovechild.

And $150,000 was paid to Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model who said she had a sexual relationship with Mr Trump.

Prosecutors said both payments were made by the National Enquirer, a US tabloid whose publisher is a long-time ally of Mr Trump.

"Everyone stands equal under the law," Mr Bragg said after the arraignment. "No matter who you are, we will not normalise serious criminal conduct."

The odds of a conviction are so far unclear but the charges against Mr Trump have pulled the country into uncharted political territory.

While a criminal conviction would not prevent Mr Trump from either running for president or from re-claiming the Oval Office, the prolonged legal fight could prove a major distraction for the Republican front-runner, and may add a new layer of turmoil to his party's primary.

Hundreds of Mr Trump's supporters congregated at a park across from the court on Tuesday morning. They were joined by congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a right-wing Republican from Georgia who derided the Democratic party as "communists" and "failures".

"Every single American should be concerned," Ms Greene said of Mr Trump's indictment. Ms Greene, 48, has repeatedly promoted the false claim that Mr Trump won the 2020 presidential election.

Counter-protesters shouted and jeered, at times drowning her speech out entirely.

"Go back to Georgia!" one woman said.

Mr Trump is the focus of three other investigations, related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, and over his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House.

With additional reporting from Kayla Epstein in New York