Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States, has been in and out of court ever since he left the Oval Office. Now, in April 2024, though he is running for a new presidential mandate, Donald Trump is making history as the first ever US president to be on trial on criminal charges.
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Indeed, he is being prosecuted for allegedly making hush payments to adult-film star Stormy Daniels through his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, ahead of his 2016 presidential campaign. The trial officially started on Monday 22 April after a rather long vetting process in order to find jurors, and, already, Trump has shown numerous signs of insolence which have annoyed the judge.
This behaviour and its potential consequences have now forced the Secret Service to consider a drastic and unprecedented option.
Donald Trump could be jailed
ABC News reports that the Secret Service had ‘held meetings and started planning’ in anticipation of what would happen if Donald Trump were to be held in contempt. According to the American Dictionary Merriam-Webster, being held in contempt can be described as:
willful disobedience to or open disrespect of a court, judge, or legislative body
Indeed, as is now customary, Trump is in trouble after breaking his limited gag order and making comments about witnesses and members of the court on his own social media, Truth Social. Moreover, as ABC News explains, detaining Trump in contempt is something Judge Merchan considered on Tuesday 23 April after what they describe as a ‘contentious hearing’.
However, so far, Trump seems to be lucking out as the prosecutors have apparently chosen to seek a fine instead. But all of this is still very dependent on Trump’s behaviour as court proceedings take place.
What has the Secret Service said?
As is expected, the protective service has declined to answer and/or comment on the Trump situation. In a statement they explained:
Under federal law, the United States Secret Service must provide protection for current government leaders, former Presidents and First Ladies, visiting heads of state and other individuals designated by the President of the United States,
For all settings around the world, we study locations and develop comprehensive and layered protective models that incorporate state of the art technology, protective intelligence and advanced security tactics to safeguard our protectees. Beyond that, we do not comment on specific protective operations.
As a reminder, Trump has violated his limited gag order at least 10 times in the past month.
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Sources:
ABC News: Secret Service prepares for if Trump is jailed for contempt in hush money case
