MIAMI Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 federal felony charges in a Miami courtroom on Tuesday. Trump is accused of keeping classified military secrets at his Palm Beach Island estate and interfering with government attempts to retrieve them. He is the first president to ever be indicted on federal criminal charges.
After the arraignment, Trump was released on his own recognizance. Prosecutors did not ask for restrictions on his travel or for the surrender of his passport. Judge Jonathan Goodman did, however, order Trump not to discuss the case with potential witnesses outside the presence of his attorneys.
Trump faces 31 counts of willful retention of national security records and six counts of allegedly obstructing the federal effort to recover the documents. Trump did not address the court during his arraignment.
Co-defendant Walt Nauta was not arraigned and did not enter a plea, although he was in court with the former president Tuesday. An arraignment for Nauta who works as an aide to the former President and faces six counts, including obstruction and concealment-related charges has been scheduled for June 27.
According to the indictment, prosecutors claim Nauta lied to investigators when he was interviewed by the FBI in May of last year, allegedly claiming he was unaware of boxes being brought to Trump s residence for his review before Trump provided 15 boxes to the National Archives in 2022. According to the indictment, Nauta himself had helped move boxes from the storage room to Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.
Hundreds of Trump supporters gathered at the federal courthouse despite 90-degree heat and high humidity on Tuesday, yelling chants and waving flags on behalf of the former president who is also the leading contender to be the Republican nominee in 2024.
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