Former US president Donald Trump could potentially face a prison sentence which poses a “unique risk to safety” if he were to be incarcerated.
Trump, 77, is currently on trial in New York for allegedly falsifying internal business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to adult actor Stormy Daniels. Prosecutors claim that this was done to keep her quiet about an alleged past intimate encounter with Trump, fearing it might damage his 2016 presidential campaign.
The former president could also be jailed over his repeated violations of court orders. This trial is just one of many legal challenges Trump is dealing with, including accusations of meddling with the 2020 presidential elections in Georgia and inciting the US Capitol attack in January 2021. In total, Trump is facing approximately 90 criminal charges across four cases.
However, it’s his ongoing case in Manhattan that has seen Trump repeatedly defy court orders, which could also result in a jail sentence. On Monday, he was once again found in contempt of court – the tenth such charge he has faced recently.
(Image: Getty Images)
He was previously fined $1,000 for each of his first nine violations, but Justice Juan Merchan stated that the court will consider imprisonment for any future offenses, reports the Mirror US.
If he ends up being incarcerated, imprisoning a former president like Trump is unexplored territory for the US justice system. Numerous legal and prison specialists have weighed in on the potential challenges posed by such an event. This includes concerns about ensuring the ex-president’s safety behind bars.
Neama Rahmani, who formerly served as a federal prosecutor and currently presides over West Coast Trial Lawyers, spoke to Newsweek stating: “It’s impossible to know what prison Trump will be sent to if convicted and a judge actually imposes a sentence of incarceration. The Bureau of Prisons [BOP] has sole authority in deciding where federal inmates are housed. Judges can make recommendations, but the BOP can ignore them.”
Rahmani further explained: “In Trump’s case, there is a unique risk to his safety because he’s a former president, so the BOP would have to make sure he is at a minimum security facility, with no threat of violent inmates, isolated from the general population.”
He emphasized that a similar approach to detention would need to be implemented by the Department of Corrections in Georgia too.
Robert Rogers, an associate professor of criminal justice at Middle Tennessee State University with prior experience working for the BOP, shared his perspective with the same publication. He suggested that, to prevent any escape attempts by fanatical supporters, Trump should be kept in a maximum-security penitentiary.
(Image: Getty Images)
Tray Gober, managing partner at Lee, Gober, and Reyna – a Texas-based law firm – has stated that Trump’s potential jailing would be “unique” in US history due to his “guaranteed Secret Service protection for life.”
He added: “Providing adequate accommodations for a famous inmate is not about granting them a privilege” but is essential for upholding the principles of the US justice system.
The Secret Service has already initiated planning and meetings to determine how to monitor and protect Trump should he face “short-term confinement,” according to ABC News. The New York Times reported that an “impromptu meeting” involving officials from federal, state, and city agencies discussed strategies for “how to move and protect” Trump if he were to be held in a courthouse holding cell.
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