Security preparations are underway in Washington D.C. ahead of former President Donald Trump’s scheduled arraignment on Thursday. Trump is expected to appear in person before Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya at 4 p.m. It comes after Trump was charged Tuesday, on four felony counts in connection with his alleged attempts to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election.
A 45-page federal indictment conspiracy accuses the former president of conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.
The indictment has created heightened security concerns in Washington. Capitol Police were taking no chance of a January 6 repeat, so on Wednesday night, they surrounded the U.S. Capitol with barricades in case they need to close areas off to protesters during the Trump arraignment.
For a few minutes on Wednesday, the Capitol seemed like it was once again under attack. Harried staffers ran for the exits after alerts went out that warned of a possible active shooter on Capitol grounds.
“We’re prepared for tomorrow,” Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger said during a press briefing on Wednesday. “We’re prepared for whatever might happen.” That high alert has caused some high anxiety.
Authorities issued a shelter-in-place order and searched Senate office buildings near the U.S. Capitol. But a floor-by-floor search of the three buildings found nothing, and Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said the cause of the security scramble “may have been a bogus call.”
It’s the first chapter in a story that could wind up as a trial of a former president, with his vice president as the star witness against him. Former President Trump and his attorney say the indictment, is outrageous.
“We found nothing concerning,” he said. “We got nobody who actually heard shots and certainly no victims.”Just down Constitution Avenue, the federal courthouse prepared for its own date with history. Journalists, or their interns, lined up on the sidewalk so they could be in the courtroom for the arraignment set for 4 p.m. on Thursday.
It’s the third time that Trump has been indicted on criminal charges. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges in the two other cases, decrying the investigations as political witch hunts. As for Thursday’s arraignment, Trump won’t be placed in handcuffs when he arrives at court, according to a U.S. Marshals spokesperson.
Trump will have his fingerprints taken digitally and he will be required to give his social security number, date of birth and address, the spokesperson said. Trump’s mugshot won’t be taken because the former president’s picture is publicly available, according to the spokesperson.
