By Steve Neavling
Former President Trump found himself in familiar territory Thursday – in front of a judge, pleading not guilty to felony charges.
Trump is charged with four felony counts that allege he tried to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
Trump’s plea came before Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya at a Washington, D.C., federal courthouse, The New York Times reports.
Prosecutors didn’t seek to put Trump behind bars ahead of the trial. The judge released the former president on condition that he doesn’t violate federal, state or local law and that he “shall not communicate about facts of the case with any individual known to be a witness, except with counsel or the presence of counsel.”
It was the third time in a little over four months that Trump was arraigned on federal charges.
In this case, Trump was indicted on four counts related to conspiracy to defraud the United States, witness tampering, conspiracy against the rights of citizens, and obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding.
At the airport after the hearing, Trump spoke to reporters.
“This was never supposed to happen in America,” Trump said. “This is the persecution of the person that’s leading by very substantial numbers in the Republican primary and leading Biden by a lot. So if you can’t beat him, you persecute him or you prosecute him. We can’t let this happen in America.”
Trump is the frontrunner in the Republican primary for president.
