Updated June 13, 2023 at 10:27 PM ET
Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty in a federal courthouse in Miami on Tuesday. In an unprecedented indictment of a former president, Trump faces 37 federal charges, including unlawfully retaining government secrets and conspiring to obstruct justice.
The indictment alleges that Trump was personally involved in packing the documents as he left the White House in 2021, that he bragged about having secret materials and caused his own lawyer to mislead the FBI about what kind of papers he had stored at Mar-a-Lago.
His aide Walt Nauta has also been indicted for concealing documents and for making false statements. Nauta did not enter a plea Tuesday.
Trump says he is innocent and that he's being unfairly targeted by prosecutors because he's running for president again. His Republican allies in Congress are echoing these claims of bias in the Justice Department.
Special counsel Jack Smith, who was appointed by the Justice Department to oversee an independent investigation of Trump, defended the work of his team and the FBI in remarks last week.
"We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone," he said.
The former president appeared in court Tuesday for processing. Trump was booked, a procedure that included digital fingerprints. However, he was not in handcuffs, nor was his passport surrendered or travel limits placed on him.
During the hearing, attorneys...
Police are investigating Park Chulmin, 36, a former member of the Seongnam International Mafia Group, who raised allegations about President Lee Jae Myung’s alleged ties to organized crime during ...