Trump says he'll plead not guilty after federal indictment

Trump is set to appear in federal court in Miami on Tuesday.

To read live updates from Tuesday's court appearance, click here.

Former President Donald Trump has been indicted on federal charges in an investigation into his handling of classified documents, according to an indictment unsealed on Friday.

The indictment comes after more than 100 documents with classified markings were found at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in August 2022.

Trump was charged with 37 counts: 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information; one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice; one count of withholding a document or record; one count of corruptly concealing a document or record; one count of concealing a document in a federal investigation; one count of scheme to conceal; and one count of false statements and representations.

The indictment of Trump, who has repeatedly denied any allegations of impropriety, is unprecedented for a former president.


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DeSantis condemns 'weaponization' of federal agencies

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis referred to the "weaponization" of federal agencies – echoing a previous statement in his first public appearance since the indictment of former President Donald Trump.

The governor made his comments at a speech at the North Carolina GOP State Convention in Greensboro on Friday.

"Our founding fathers would have absolutely predicted the weaponization that we've seen with these agencies, particularly Justice and FBI, because when you don't have constitutional accountability, human nature is such that they will abuse their power. And that's what happened," DeSantis said.

As he did on Twitter, DeSantis cited Hillary Clinton and Hunter Biden to argue the presence of a double standard of justice in America.

He did not, however, name Trump, who had the steadfast support of some of the attendees.

-ABC News' Will McDuffie and Elizabeth Schulze


Christie says facts in Trump indictment are 'devastating'

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie addressed the federal indictment against former President Donald Trump and declared that it was "devastating," in an interview Friday with CNN.

Christie, who announced his candidacy this week for president, called it a "very, very evidence-filled indictment" and the facts contained within it "devastating" for Trump.

Christie reiterated that he believed Trump engaged in behavior that was "irresponsible."

Christie also disagreed with some Republicans like Speaker Kevin McCarthy who have warned about the disruption the indictment could cause, saying that Trump's wounds were "self-inflicted" and that he could have avoided this by simply returning the documents.

"He has contributed mightily to subjecting the country to the pain that we're going to go through over the course of the next number of months because of what's going on," Christie said.

-ABC News' Nicholas Kerr


Secret Service, Marshals preparing for Trump court appearance

The U.S. Secret Service is preparing for Trump's initial appearance in federal court in Miami on Tuesday as he faces 37 felony counts in a sweeping indictment.

In coordination with the U.S. Marshals and local law enforcement authorities, the Secret Service is working to streamline Trump's movements and minimize the number or locations and the distance he needs to move within the court complex to help secure his appearance.

"While operational security precludes us from going into specifics, the Secret Service will not seek any special accommodations outside of what would be required to ensure the former Presidents continued safety," Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement.

A U.S. Marshal spokesperson said that "ensuring that judges can rule independently and free from harm or intimidation is paramount to the rule of law, and a fundamental mission of the USMS."

-ABC News Jack Date


GOP Rep. calls for an 'eye for an eye'

Following the unsealing of Trump's indictment, GOP lawmakers continued reacting to the news this afternoon and one included an incendiary remark.

"We have now reached a war phase. Eye for an eye," Rep. Andy Biggs, a Freedom Caucus member and top Trump ally, tweeted.

Another Trump ally, Rep. Clay Higgins, tweeted that "President Trump said he has "been summoned to appear at the Federal Courthouse in Miami on Tuesday, at 3 PM. This is a perimeter probe from the oppressors. Hold. rPOTUS has this. Buckle up. 1/50K know your bridges. Rock steady calm. That is all."

-ABC News' Gabe Ferris


Details revealed in indictment

The indictment alleged that, after the FBI subpoenaed former President Donald Trump, he "endeavored to obstruct the FBI and grand jury investigations and conceal his continued retention of classified documents by" actions including: suggesting his attorney falsely tell the FBI and grand jury that he didn’t have documents responsive to the subpoena; directing aide Walt Nauta to move boxes of documents to conceal them from Trump’s attorney, the FBI and grand jury; and causing a false certification to be submitted to the FBI and grand jury saying all documents were provided "while knowing that, in fact, not all such documents has been produced."

The indictment noted that between January 2021 and August 2022, Mar-a-Lago hosted more than 150 social events, including weddings and fundraisers "that together drew tens of thousands of guests."

The indictment mentions five of Trump’s statements in 2016, when still a candidate for president, including when he said in August 2016 that "in my administration I’m going to enforce all laws concerning the protection of classified information."

According to the indictment, on June 2, an attorney for Trump went through the boxes in the storage room, removed 38 documents with classified markings, placed them in a redwood folder and sealed it with clear duct tape.

Trump allegedly asked, "Did you find anything?…. Is it bad? Good?" and they discussed what to do with the documents, according to prosecutors.

Trump's attorney said at that point Trump "made a funny motion as though- well okay why don't you take them with you to your hotel room and if there’s anything really bad in there, like, you know, pluck it out. And that was the motion that he made. He didn't say that."

According to the indictment, Trump and Nauta misled one of the Trump attorneys by moving boxes that contained documents with classified markings so that the attorney would not find the documents and produce them to a federal grand jury.

The indictment details how Nauta allegedly lied to FBI agents in May 2022 when he claimed to have no knowledge of the classified documents being brought to Mar-a-Lago.