Former US President Donald Trump has criticized the hush money proceedings against him as “very unfair.” “You saw what happened to some of the witnesses who were on our side – they were literally crucified,” Trump said on Friday in a speech in New York, in which he called US President Joe Biden and his “gang” “sick” and “fascists.”
On Thursday, Trump became the first former president in US history to be found guilty in a criminal trial. The jury found the 77-year-old guilty on all 34 counts in the hush money case. His sentence is to be announced on July 11, and a fine or suspended sentence is considered likely.
Trump was found guilty of covering up a hush money payment of $130,000 (about 120,000 euros in today's value) to former porn actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election by falsifying business documents. The payment was used to trick Stormy Daniels into concealing an alleged sex affair that she claims to have had with Trump and which Trump denies.
Trump announced on Friday that he would appeal the ruling. The appeals process is likely to drag on until after the presidential election on November 5, in which Trump is expected to run for the Republicans against the Democratic incumbent Biden.
