Former President Donald Trump indicted in hush money probe

Former President Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury in a probe related to a payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Trump is the first current or former president to face criminal charges.

Trump is alleged to have used campaign funds to pay Daniels is accused Trump of having an affair with her.

From the Associated Press:

The charges remained under seal late Thursday, but the investigation centered on payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to silence claims of an extramarital sexual encounter. Prosecutors said they were working to coordinate Trump’s surrender, which could happen early next week. They did not say whether they intended to seek prison time in the event of a conviction, a development that wouldn’t prevent Trump from seeking or winning the presidency.

The indictment, an extraordinary development after years of investigations into Trump’s business, political and personal dealings, injects a local district attorney’s office into the heart of a national presidential race and ushers in criminal proceedings in a city that the ex-president for decades called home. Arriving at a time of deep political divisions, the charges are likely to reinforce rather than reshape dueling perspectives of those who see accountability as long overdue and those who, like Trump, feel the Republican is being targeted for political purposes by a Democratic prosecutor.

Trump is also being investigated in Georgia as a result of his phone call to Georgia elections officials, as well as two other investigations regarding his part in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot and keeping classified documents after he left office