Former President Donald Trump is set to face a federal judge on Thursday for an arraignment, following his third indictment on four new charges — all relating to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
As Trump's arraignment approaches, security is tight outside of the federal courthouse in Washington D.C. Overnight, fencing and other barricades were put in place around the Prettyman Federal Courthouse — not far from the U.S. Capitol. Roads are expected to be closed down, as well.
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The former president is expected to arrive through an underground entrance, before his court appearance at 4 p.m. Thursday.
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This will now be the third time that Trump will be arraigned on criminal charges. The special counsel is accusing the former president of conspiring to overturn an election he had lost, which resulted in the January 6 attack at the Capitol.
He is facing four counts, including conspiring to defraud the United States.
"As described in the indictment, it was fueled by lies, lies by the defendant, targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the US government, the nation's process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election," special counsel Jack Smith said.
Lawyers for Trump say the whole ordeal is a political move.
"It's the first time that a sitting president is attacking a political opponent on first amendment grounds and basically making it criminal to state your position," attorney for Trump John Lauro said.
There are also six unnamed co-conspirators in the case, but they have not been charged.
