Legal analysts predict Trump criminal case will go to trial
BOSTON - Local legal analysts are weighing in following former President Donald Trump's arraignment at which he pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records in New York.
"The charge of falsifying business records is a very typical white-collar crime charge," said legal analyst Jennifer Roman.
"Republicans have said, 'why isn't the DA focusing on street crime and protecting the citizens?'" added former defense attorney Phil Tracy. "Well, there is also the financial center of the world in Manhattan and as a result of that, you are going to have white-collar crimes at the highest level, and so it isn't unusual to go after them."
READ: Full Trump indictment charging him with 34 felony counts
The charges accuse Trump of falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments to a porn star, an alleged mistress, and a door man with a story Trump allegedly wanted hidden from 2016 to 2017, ranging from his time as a candidate to president.
Despite the salacious facts, the alleged crime itself is quite simple. "There is no crime in paying somebody hush money," Roman said. "That's not the crime here. The crime is the next step that the prosecution accuses Donald Trump of taking, which is falsifying business records to cover up the hush money."
The crime carries a penalty of one to four years in prison, but up to a judge's discretion, a first-time offender could face little to no prison time. Experts say if convicted, that's the likely result for Trump. "If you are a first-time offender, it would be really unusual to get prison time on these charges, but let's see what happens," Roman said.
The next court date for the case is a pre-trial hearing in December, following by trial tentatively scheduled for early 2024, as Trump is simultaneously running for president again.
Statistically, only two to three percent of criminal cases end up in trial, and legal experts say, if prosecutors survive a motion to dismiss by Trump, this case will end up in trial. "He will never ever, ever, give up," Tracy said. "He is not that type."
"He won't want to back down and he really has nothing to lose," Roman added. "The reality of it is that he can run for president and have pending criminal charges."