The indictment spells out that Trump had a right to speak, and even lie about the election results. However, they say the charges are centered around his alleged actions, including a scheme involving fake electors.
For the third time this year, former President Donald Trump appeared in a courtroom to answer to criminal charges on Thursday, this time for his latest indictment accusing him of trying to block the peaceful transfer of power following the 2020 presidential election.
By Friday morning, the former president was back at his golf club in New Jersey. He's now left waiting for his third criminal trial, after pleading not guilty in court on Thursday.
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That appearance inside a federal courtroom in Washington D.C. last 27 minutes, and saw Trump entering his own not guilty plea to four felony counts on charges he conspired to defraud the U.S. government and tried to overturn an election he had lost.
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There were no cameras allowed inside the courtroom, but sketches of the arraignment have provided a glimpse at the scene. Trump was sitting just about 20 feet away from special counsel Jack Smith.
Prosecutors want a speedy trial, but Trump's defense team disagrees, citing a large amount of discovery material.
In the meantime, the former president was defiant after court.
"This is a persecution of a political opponent," Trump said to news reporters. "This was never supposed to happen in America. This is the persecution of the person that's leading by very, very substantial numbers in the Republican primary.”
His legal team is forming a free speech defense. The indictment spells out that Trump had a right to speak, and even lie about the election results. However, they say the charges are centered around his alleged actions, including a scheme involving fake electors.
Trump is due back in court on Aug. 28 and that is when more details may come out about when this case could go to trial.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
