Former US president Donald Trump offered a full-throated defence of his conduct Tuesday in his first public remarks since being charged over hush money payments to a porn star, blasting the criminal prosecution as "an insult to our country". Trump hours earlier pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts in a dramatic hearing in New York that transfixed the nation – and began the countdown to the first-ever criminal trial of a current or former US president. Read our liveblog to see how the day's events unfolded. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
2:35am: Defendant Trump slams criminal charges as 'insult to our country'
In his first public remarks since being charged with 34 felony counts related to business fraud, former president Trump said: "The only crime I have committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it ... It's an insult to our country."
"I never thought anything like this could happen in America," Trump told an audience of several hundred donors, political allies and other supporters after returning to Mar-a-Lago, his beachfront mansion in southern Florida.
The one-time reality TV star had sent a fundraising email shortly before flying back to Florida, saying that since the news of his indictment broke, his campaign had raised over $10 million.
"While we are living through the darkest hours of American history, I can say that at least for this moment right now, I am in great spirits," he said.
Trump – the frontrunner in the race for the 2024 Republican nomination for president – said from a stage festooned with American flags in an opulent gold-and-cream ballroom that "radical left" prosecutors were out to get him "at any cost".
He also lashed out at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him and declared himself the victim of election interference without offering evidence.
10:45pm: Prosecutor says 'cannot and will not normalise serious criminal conduct'
Bragg, the man bringing the charges against Trump, said he would not allow the former president to get away with law-breaking in remarks to the press.
"These are felony crimes in New York State. No matter who you are we cannot and will not normalise serious criminal conduct," he said.
"We today uphold our solemn responsibility to ensure that everyone stands equal before the law," Bragg added.
10:20pm: Trump lawyer vows to fight 'boilerplate' indictment
A lawyer for Donald Trump has vowed to fight the 34 criminal counts that the former president faces over hush-money payments, calling the charges "sad".
"The indictment itself is boilerplate," attorney Todd Blanche said outside the Manhattan court complex following Trump's arraignment, adding that the indictment was "sad and we're going to fight it, we're going to fight it hard".
Joe Tacopina, another one of Trump's lawyers, said the unsealing of the indictment showed "that the rule of law died in this country".
"While everyone is not above the law, no one is below it either. And if this man's name was not Donald J Trump, there is no scenario we'd all be here today," he added.
10:05pm: Trump released from custody without pre-trial restrictions
A New York judge has released the former US president from custody without any pre-trial restrictions following an hour-long hearing.
The judge, Juan Merchan, said a trial could potentially start in January 2024, although Trump's lawyers indicated they would rather push it back to the spring.
Trump was seen exiting the Manhattan courthouse and making his way to a waiting motorcade, just over two hours after arriving at the complex for the historic hearing.
9:45pm: Trump charged over three hush-money cases
Trump's 34 felony counts of fasifying business records stem from three pre-election hush-money cases, prosecutors have said.
"Donald J. Trump repeatedly and fraudulently falsified New York business records to conceal criminal conduct that hid damaging information from the voting public during the 2016 presidential election," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement.
Taken together, the charges carry a maximum sentence of more than 100 years in prison under New York law but an actual prison sentence if he is convicted at a trial would almost certainly be far less than that.
While falsifying business records in New York on its own is a misdemeanor punishable by no more than one year in prison, it is elevated to a felony punishable by up to four years in prison when done to advance or conceal another crime.
9:10pm: Reactions to Trump's arraignment
“A somber moment in the life of our country, when it’s necessary to arraign a former president on criminal charges,” Representative Adam Schiff, a Democrat of California, tweeted as Trump entered his plea in New York.
“As the case falls to the DA to prove, we must recognise what is most important: Even the most powerful are held to account, and that nobody is above the law,” wrote Schiff, who was the lead prosecutor in the Senate impeachment trial of Trump in 2020.
“Today is a bad day for all of us & we are all going to regret it for a very long time,” said Senator Marco Rubio, a Republican of Florida, in a video message posted on Twitter.
"Today we set the new normal that if you really want to take someone down, nothing should stop you. You should be able to manipulate the law anyway you want to charge someone," Rubio said in a video posted on his Twitter account, describing the charges against Trump as "absurd".
8:45pm: Trump pleads not guilty to criminal charges
As expected, the former US president has entered a "not guilty" plea, Reuters reports.
Wearing a dark blue suit and red tie, Trump, 76, pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
8:35pm: Trump enters courtroom for arraignment
Trump has entered the courtroom on the 15th floor of the Manhattan Criminal Courts building, where his arraignment will begin shortly.
The former US president did not address the media as he entered the room.
8:20pm: Jail time?
While the criminal charges remain sealed, it is difficult to predict whether a potential conviction could see the unprecedented situation of a former US president being sentenced to prison.
The charges against Trump are believed to involve business fraud and campaign-finance violations, but whether they rise to the level of felonies – which carry potential jail time – is unknown for now.
Trump has no criminal record and whether he would be sentenced to prison in the event of a conviction remains to be seen.
8:02pm: Trump court appearance 'not a focus' for Biden
The White House's press secretary has declined to comment about Trump's arrest in New York during her daily briefing.
"This is an ongoing case and we're just not going to comment," Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. "This is not (the president's) focus."
7:50pm: Trump under formal arrest
Trump's arrival at the Manhattan court means he is now formally under arrest and in police custody, awaiting his arraignment.
He is the first former or sitting American president to face criminal charges.
7:40pm: Trump says 'surreal' to appear in court to face charges
Trump said it was "surreal" to be appearing in court as he posted live updates on social media while being driven to the courtroom in Manhattan.
FRANCE 24's Jessica Le Masurier has the latest on the mood outside the court, moments after the former US president stepped inside to face criminal charges.
7:25pm: Trump arrives at Manhattan courthouse
The former US president has arrived at the Manhattan district attorney's office to be formally charged. Trump was driven to the courthouse in a motorcade after departing his New York residence at Trump Tower.
Trump, who has said he is innocent and is due to plead not guilty, is expected to surrender to the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg ahead of an arraignment proceeding before Justice Juan Merchan.
7:15pm: What is Trump accused of?
The Manhattan grand jury that indicted Trump heard evidence about a $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels in the waning days of the 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump at a Lake Tahoe hotel in 2006.
Trump denies a sexual relationship but has acknowledged reimbursing his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen for the payment. What has got Trump into trouble is how Cohen's reimbursement was recorded in his accounts. He is accused of falsifying his business records by saying the payment was for legal fees.
In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance law violations and was sentenced to three years in prison. He testified in the Manhattan investigation last month.
7:05pm: Trump supporters, critics face off outside courtroom
Trump supporters and detractors are noisily rallying outside the Manhattan courthouse where he is due to appear, separated by barricades set up by police to try to keep order.
A limousine carrying a Trump impersonator wearing a red hat and giving a thumbs-up gesture drove past the scene near Trump Tower, flanked by a pickup truck flying pro-Trump flags.
Meanwhile, his critics held signs including one of Trump dressed in a striped jail uniform behind bars and another that read, "Lock Him Up".
Standing by is FRANCE 24's New York correspondent Jessica Le Masurier. Here's her latest report:
6:55pm: Fingerprints – but no mug shot?
Once he surrenders to the authorities at Manhattan Criminal Court, Trump is likely to undergo the standard booking procedure of being fingerprinted – and potentially photographed, which would result in an all-time famous mug shot.
However, FRANCE 24's Douglas Herbert said an amended New York law meant the authorities were unlikely to make such a photo public.
There is no precedent for a former president's surrender to court authorities, and it remains to be seen whether the unpredictable Trump will follow procedure.
Joe Tacopina, one of Trump's lawyers, said the former president would not be placed in handcuffs. A "perp walk" – in which a defendant is escorted in handcuffs past media cameras – is unlikely for an ex-president under US Secret Service protection.
6:40pm: Ex-president alleges 'political persecution'
The twice-impeached Republican claims he is the victim of "political persecution" – but is also using the court case to energise his support base and raise millions of dollars for his bid to reclaim the White House next year.
He plans to speak to reporters as he walks through the hallways toward court, one of his lawyers told CNN.
"THE RADICAL LEFT DEMOCRATS HAVE CRIMINALIZED THE JUSTICE SYSTEM," Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social hours before the hearing, branding the legal proceedings a "kangaroo court."
6:35pm: Trump to plead not guilty at historic arraignment
Donald Trump is set to plead not guilty to criminal charges in a New York courtroom later today, in an unprecedented case that threatens to upend the 2024 White House race.
Trump is the first sitting or former American president to be criminally indicted – a historic development that has propelled the United States into uncharted political waters.
Amid tight security in Manhattan, and a global media frenzy, the 76-year-old will learn at his arraignment precisely what charges he faces over hush money paid to a porn star ahead of the 2016 election that brought him to power.
