Southwest Florida criminal defense attorney explains Trump indictment

Reporter: Tiffany Rizzo Writer: Joey Pellegrino
Published: Updated:
Former President Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

WINK News spoke to Douglas Malloy, criminal defense attorney and former chief assistant U.S. attorney for Southwest Florida, about what former President Donald Trump’s indictment means on a legal level.

Although there is an indictment, Malloy says we still don’t know what exactly is in it. Still, there is no stopping the process at this point.

The grand jury has found probable cause to believe Trump committed a crime. When asked whether this is politics or if Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has a case, Malloy said he does not think this decision is political; it just means if someone has committed a crime, no one is above the law.

Malloy broke down the steps to getting an indictment.

“Indictment means that the DA’s office, in this case, has presented evidence to a grand jury,” Mallow said. “Now, grand juries are selected at random, and they are anonymous, just to determine… whether there’s probable cause that a crime has been committed. The DA has some other thoughts, too, to make sure that he can prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt. So, those are the decisions that went into bringing this indictment.”

At no time in history has a sitting or former president been indicted.

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