*Published with the generous permission of Teri Kanefield. Read all of her writing here.
On Saturday morning, on Truth Social, Trump announced that he will be arrested Tuesday:
. . . THE FAR & AWAY LEADING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE AND FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, WILL BE ARRESTED ON TUESDAY OF NEXT WEEK. PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!”
From The New York Times:
We’ve been hearing rumors all week that Stormy Daniels and Michael Cohen testified before a Manhattan grand jury and that an indictment might be coming.
Manhattan DA Bragg responded to Trump’s call for violence by telling DA employees in an email that “we do not tolerate attempts to intimidate our office or threaten the rule of law in New York.” While I consider Trump an unreliable source, Bragg’s internal email indicates that indeed, something is brewing.
If it’s true that Trump will be arrested Tuesday, he evidently decided to leak this for drama, to get ahead of the story, and give his propaganda network a chance to get working.
Remember, we don’t know what the charges are. I hope that a first indictment contains more than the hush-money stuff. One charge at a time makes it easier for the Right Wing Propaganda Machine to work.
If you want a review of the Manhattan investigation, see this post from several weeks ago.
Arrest Procedure
Arrests are usually not dramatic like in the movies. How an arrest is handled depends on the situation. A violent crime in progress, for example, will be handled differently from a person who cheated two years ago on taxes.
If prosecutors feel there is a danger of destroyed evidence or flight, they can seal the charges and get a warrant so that they can take the defendant by surprise.
If the prosecution has been in contact with the defense counsel (which we know happened in this case) the most likely scenario is that the defendant will be given a summons and the prosecutor and defense lawyer will arrange a time and place for the defendant’s appearance. (I checked with Mark Reichel before posting this to make sure it was accurate.)
More details from a follower on Mastodon:
In my experience, the prosecutor contacts the defense counsel (and Magistrate Judge), and a date is agreed to. The defendant then comes to the FBI field office (or Marshal’s office) on that day/time and is photographed and fingerprinted. Law enforcement then brings the defendant to the Magistrate Judge’s court for the initial appearances, where the defense lawyer meets them. The Arraignment may happen at the same time. (These things vary based on the district.)
If indeed there will be an arrest and indictment this week, we are in for a bumpy ride. I’ve been warning people that indictments are just the beginning. There will be pre-trial motions, and a nerve-wracking trial, and the judge may make rulings you don’t like. While this will move faster than civil proceedings, recall a prosecutor’s definition of “imminent.”
Procedures and “delays” are not bad.
Procedures = rules. Procedures slow things down.
The idea motivating criminal justice procedures has never been to move from indictment to punishment as quickly as possible. The goal is to move with precision, care, and thoroughness to make sure that the correct results are reached.
Until an indictment is filed and Trump is arrested, all we can do is engage in speculation, which is tiring and not productive. If he is not arrested on Tuesday, he looks silly and so does everyone who spent days discussing it.
If he is arrested, he managed to control the media narrative.
I suggest instead of going into speculation land (and to prepare for what may be coming) you take a break and curl up and relax and read a story.
I was sitting in a cabin on a mountain outside of Los Angeles when I got an idea for a story. This was my view from the window:
My yard on California’s central coast has succulents and palm trees, so it was quite mesmerizing to watch the snowfall.
Some of you read a shorter version of the story. I have since felt inspired to expand it into a short novel.
I currently have two books under contract, a book on Disinformation with Macmillan and a book on the Bill of Rights with Abrams.
Seeing books through publication is time-consuming and a hassle (and generally, I don’t write the kinds of books that make bestseller lists. Me = too 
)
So I thought I’d make the short novel free for my readers.
So grab your favorite beverage, snuggle into a comfy chair, and click here.
