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Live updates: Trump’s federal arraignment in Miami

Politics Updated on Jun 13, 2023 9:07 PM EDT — Published on Jun 13, 2023 11:18 AM EDT

Find more of our coverage on the arraignment of former President Donald Trump here, including the full indictment, plus sign up for our weekly politics newsletter, Here’s the Deal.

5:55 p.m. | Trump returns to New Jersey golf club

Donald Trump has arrived back at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

The former president is scheduled to give his first speech since pleading not guilty to charges of keeping classified documents and blocking the government’s efforts to get them back.

News helicopters thumped overhead as the sun set over the rolling greens at Bedminster.

The arrival of Trump’s motorcade was met with cheers. Many people rushed to get pictures. Several hundred supporters and club members were packed onto a patio, many wearing red “Make America Great Again” hats.

Guests included former Justice Department official Kash Patel, former New York Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik and MyPillow businessman and conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell.

Lindell said he was at the event “to support our real president, Donald Trump,” and “there was nothing done with any malicious intent at all.” He added that he considers the indictment “a blessing” because he thinks it will drive Trump’s poll numbers up.

5:48 p.m. | Trump suffers setback in New York

While Donald Trump was dealing with his criminal case in Miami, a judge was adding to his legal headaches in New York.

A federal judge said Tuesday he would let advice columnist E. Jean Carroll update one of her two lawsuits against Trump to include new defamation claims.

Carroll recently won a $5 million judgement against Trump from a jury that found he sexually abused her in a department store dressing room in 1996, then damaged her reputation by claiming she fabricated her allegations. Judge Lewis Kaplan said Carroll could amend another lawsuit that seeks at least $10 million more from Trump over more recent public comments assailing her truthfulness.

Trump denies assaulting Carroll and said he was never in the department store with her. The jury said Carroll hadn’t proved her allegation that she was raped, but found Trump liable for a lesser form of sexual battery.

5:05 p.m. | Trump goes from court to Cuban eatery

Former President Trump Is Arraigned On Federal Espionage Charges

Former President Donald Trump visits the Versailles restaurant in the Little Havana neighborhood after being arraigned at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse on June 13, 2023. Photo by Stephanie Keith/ Getty Images

Donald Trump’s first stop after court was the iconic Versailles restaurant and bakery in the Little Havana neighborhood.

Inside, a group of people greeted him and laid hands on him in prayer. Those in the room also sang “Happy Birthday” to Trump, who will turn 77 on Wednesday.

“Some birthday. Some birthday,” he said. “We’ve got a government that is out of control.”

Versailles is a landmark that is a required stop for politicians visiting Miami. Cuban exiles gathered there to celebrate Fidel Castro’s death in 2016.

Special counsel sees Trump in court

The special counsel who brought charges against Donald Trump attended the former president’s first court appearance in person.

WATCH: Special Counsel Jack Smith speaks after Justice Department unseals Trump indictment

Jack Smith sat in the first row behind the prosecution’s table at Tuesday’s hearing in Miami federal court, where Trump pleaded not guilty to charges that he hoarded classified documents.

Smith spoke briefly Friday about the indictment but has otherwise remained out of public view.

Trump ordered not to discuss case with witnesses

Donald Trump’s lawyer objected to barring the former president from talking to witnesses including his personal aide, who is accused alongside him.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche said that some of the witnesses work for Trump and he needs to be able to communicate with them. After some back and forth, U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman said Trump cannot talk to them about the case except through his lawyers, but he can talk to them about their jobs.

“There will be no communication about the case with fact witnesses who are on a list provided by the government,” Goodman said.

Walter Nauta, a Navy veteran who fetched Trump’s Diet Cokes as his valet at the White House before joining him as a personal aide at Mar-a-Lago, was granted bond with the same conditions as Trump. He did not enter a plea, though, because he doesn’t have a local attorney.

Nauta will be arraigned June 27 before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres but doesn’t have to attend in person.

4:03 p.m. | Trump to be released without bond

Former President Donald Trump departs following his appearance at Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse on June 13, 2023. Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/ AFP via Getty Images

Trump will be released without having to pay a bond. He will not have to surrender his passport or restrict his personal travel. As the hearing continued after his not guilty plea was entered, Trump sat at the table scowling with his arms crossed.

3:28 p.m. | Trump pleads not guilty

Former President Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to federal charges alleging he hoarded classified documents detailing sensitive military secrets and schemed to thwart government efforts to get them back.

Trump appeared before a judge in Miami’s federal courthouse on Tuesday in a stunning moment in American history days after he became the first former president charged with federal crimes.

Authorities say Trump schemed and lied to block the government from recovering the documents concerning nuclear programs and other sensitive military secrets stored at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

It’s the second criminal case Trump is facing as he seeks to reclaim the White House in 2024. He’s also accused in New York state court of falsifying business records related to hush-money payments made during the 2016 campaign.

Trump has denied wrongdoing in both cases and slammed the prosecutions as politically motivated. He’s expected to return later Tuesday to New Jersey, where he’s scheduled a press event to publicly respond to the charges.

2:48 p.m. | Trump rode to court with his son Eric

Trump rode to court with his son Eric, who accompanied the motorcade from the former president’s Doral resort to the federal courthouse in Miami.

CNN aired footage of Trump walking to a line of SUVs with his son by his side while someone yelled, “Let’s go Trump!”

The former president could be seen stopping and waving at supporters, as well as chatting with staff members. Eric Trump appeared to clap his father on the back just before he climbed in a vehicle.

As he rode to court, Trump posted on his social media site that the case against him was a “witch hunt.”

Later, outside the courthouse Trump lawyer Alina Habba said, “Today is not about President Donald J. Trump, who is defiant.”

“It is not about the Republican Party, it is not about the 2024 election,” Habba added. “It is about the destruction of longstanding principles that have set this country apart.”

2:36 p.m. | Trump and aide booked in Miami court over classified documents case

Trump and an aide charged as a co-conspirator have been booked in Miami federal court.

That’s according to the U.S. Marshals Service, which said Trump and Walt Nauta had been booked shortly after they arrived Tuesday afternoon.

Both men are expected to appear at the defense table shortly on charges that they wrongly held onto classified documents.

The two men were seen arriving at court together.

1:57 p.m. | Trump arrives at Miami courthouse for historic appearance

Trump has arrived at the federal courthouse in Miami to formally surrender to authorities ahead of his court appearance on charges accusing him of illegally hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

Trump’s motorcade arrived Tuesday afternoon at the courthouse shortly before he’s scheduled to appear before a magistrate judge, a stunning moment in American history days after he became the first former president charged with federal crimes.

Trump has denied any wrongdoing, saying he’s being unfairly targeted by political opponents who want to hurt his campaign. After his court appearance, Trump will return to New Jersey, where he’s expected to hold a press event to publicly respond to the charges.

1:22 p.m. | Demonstrators for and against Trump squabble in front of courthouse

A small group of pro-Trump supporters and anti-Trump protesters were squabbling in front of Miami’s federal courthouse as they awaited the former president’s appearance Tuesday.

A man with “Trump sucks” spray-painted on his jacket and pants shouted at supporters of the former president as they passed by while a man held a homemade “Free Trump” banner behind others who shouted at him. Dozens of supporters wrapped themselves in Trump flags or campaign merchandise as they milled about near the courthouse.

The crowd included far-right internet personality Anthime Gionet, who served a two-month prison sentence for streaming live video while he stormed the U.S. Capitol with a mob of Trump supporters on Jan. 6, 2021.

Gionet, better known as “Baked Alaska,” was livestreaming video of his interactions with people around the courthouse — something the terms of Gionet’s probation don’t appear to prohibit.

Meanwhile, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, wearing a T-shirt with a police logo, toured the nearby media encampment and said he didn’t expect any disturbances.

“So far, so good,” Suarez said. “It’s still early, but the crowd seems to be under control and everyone respectful and peaceful. Let’s hope it remains that way.”

Suarez is considering a presidential run and has suggested he could make his intentions known during a speech Thursday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California.

12:30 p.m. | Trump supporters bused in from other parts of Florida

A view of memorabilia depicting former U.S. President Donald Trump, near the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse, on the day former U.S. President Trump is to appear at his arraignment on classified document charges, in Miami, Florida, U.S., June 13, 2023. Marco Bello/Reuters

In an Orlando Walmart parking lot, about four dozen Trump supporters dressed in red, white and blue clothing boarded two buses for the four-hour trip to Miami to show their support outside the federal courthouse where the former president would be appearing.

Some wore T-shirts that read “Donald Trump Did Nothing Wrong” and hats stenciled with “Because America Can Never Be Too Great.”

“He has done so much for us. This what we can do for him. This is what we must do for him,” said Laurie Pettengill, who drove halfway across the state from Homosassa Springs on Florida’s Gulf Coast to go on the trip.

Miriam Ramirez carried a sign adorned with small American flags that said, “Puerto Republican Assembly Present for Trump!” She said the federal charges were a continuation of prosecutorial harassment that Trump has faced for years.

“This has been going on ever since he became president,” Ramirez said.

The trip was organized a grassroots group called the Florida Republican Assembly, which had originally envisioned four buses making the journey but settled for just two.

As the Trump supporters boarded the buses, a lone woman, Danette Chialtas, shouted at them, calling them traitors for supporting Trump.

“He’s being tried on espionage charges, and they are enabling it,” Chialtas said, pointing to the buses.

12:01 p.m. | Trump to be digitally fingerprinted

Trump will be digitally fingerprinted and have his birthdate and Social Security number taken as part of the booking process Tuesday at the federal courthouse in Miami, a spokesman for the U.S. Marshals Service says.

The spokesman said the former president will forgo a mugshot because enough photos of him already exist in the system — confirming what a person familiar with negotiations around the proceedings said earlier.

WATCH: Special Counsel Jack Smith speaks after Justice Department unseals Trump indictment

The spokesman said that booking could take place before Trump appears in court or afterward, depending on when he arrives. He said authorities did not plan to immediately alert the media once Trump had arrived.

Outside the courthouse, meanwhile, police cleared an area where media covering the event had set up tents. They brought in sniffer dogs to search for anything suspicious but planned to allow journalists back into the area once the search was complete.

11:58 a.m. | 2024 campaign trail mostly quiet as attention shifts (back) to Trump

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks to members of the media in Miami

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks to members of the media, on the day former U.S. President Donald Trump is to appear at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse on classified document charges, in Miami, Florida, U.S., June 13, 2023. Marco Bello/Reuters

Trump’s 2024 Republican presidential rivals were largely refraining from public campaign events as the political world’s attention shifted to the former president’s appearance in federal court in Miami.

Speaking Tuesday morning outside the courthouse where Trump will be arraigned, Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy reiterated his commitment to pardoning Trump if elected to the White House. The wealthy biotech entrepreneur also announced that he’d given every 2024 presidential challenger signed commitment letters asking them to join him in the pledge.

Other Republican presidential hopefuls, including Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, planned fundraisers and media appearances while forgoing campaign events. South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott was heading to Iowa for a town hall event later in the week but had no public events scheduled for Tuesday.

Trump is the Republican White House primary’s early front-runner. When he appeared in court in April on a separate criminal case involving alleged hush money payments, the attention was intense, dominating media coverage for days.

No Trump mugshot expected

Trump is not expected to have a mugshot taken when he surrenders to authorities in federal court in Miami to face charges related to mishandling classified documents.

That’s according to a person familiar with negotiations surrounding the case who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss the details of the proceedings.

Having no picture taken is similar to Trump’s recent appearance in court in New York on a separate case involving hush money payments, when the former president also avoided having his mug shot taken.

— Jill Colvin

11:18 a.m. | Media outnumbers Trump supporters outside courthouse

A supporter of former U.S. President Donald Trump stands outside The Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse, in M...

A supporter of former President Donald Trump and other people stand outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse on the morning he is to appear there on classified document charges. Photo by Marco Bello/ Reuters

Security was tight outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson federal courthouse Tuesday ahead of the former president’s court appearance.

But Trump supporters were noticeably few hours before the appearance — far outnumbered by the hundreds of journalists from the U.S. and around the world who have converged on downtown Miami for the historic occasion.

That recalled the scene in New York, where Trump was arraigned in April on a separate criminal case involving hush money he’s accused of paying during the 2016 presidential campaign. Then, there were far more reporters than demonstrators for and against the former president.

WATCH: Miami steps up security ahead of Trump court appearance

Among those who arrived early Tuesday in Miami were father and son Florencio and Kevin Rodriguez, who came to the U.S. 15 years ago as asylum seekers fleeing Cuba. Wearing a shirt bearing the slogan “Jesus is my savior, Trump my president,” the younger Rodriguez, Kevin, said it is possible that Trump is guilty of illegally retaining classified documents.

But he questioned the fairness of the proceedings in light of what he said was prosecutors’ lax attitude toward President Joe Biden and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. They’ve both been accused of mishandling classified intelligence and not appeared in court, though they also have not faced accusations of intentionally hiding their actions, like Trump has.

“Even if he’s guilty, we will still support him,” Rodriguez said, noting the Trump administration’s staunch opposition to Cuba’s government, “We never abandon our amigos — those who love this country and our liberty.”

Trump supporters, detractors gather outside courthouse

Dominic Santana holds up a sign outside The Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse, in Miami

Dominic Santana holds up a sign outside the courthouse in Miami. Photo by Marco Bello/ Reuters

Trump wasn’t due in court in Miami for hours, but both his supporters and detractors were already gathering outside.

Jack Kaplan said he drove two hours from Fort Pierce, where the judge assigned to the case is based, to counter the large number of Trump supporters who had already started showing up outside the federal courthouse in Miami.

Toting a copy of the indictment affixed to a clipboard and a sign reading “Trump is Toast,” the 68-year-old retired car dealer said he’ll celebrate with a $1,400 bottle of Mouton Rothschild red wine if the former president goes to prison.

WATCH: Violent rhetoric escalates online after latest Trump indictment

“I’ve already get the bottle sitting in my wine cooler,” said Kaplan as a Trump supporter carrying a sign reading “Keep America Great” walked by coolly. “I’m going to have a big party.”

Trump to appear in court

Former U.S. President Donald Trump arrives at Miami International Airport

Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s plane arrives at Miami International Airport on June 12, 2023, as he is to appear in a federal court on classified document charges. Photo by Marco Bello/ Reuters

Trump will make his first court appearance to answer for a federal indictment involving 37 felony counts related to hoarding top secret government documents, boastfully displaying them to visitors and trying to hide them from investigators who demanded them back.

The former president will be arraigned in federal court in Miami, allowing him to hear prosecutors’ charges that he jeopardized national security by mishandling classified information.

The case against him is historic but doesn’t prohibit Trump from a third run at the presidency, and he urged his supporters to rally outside the courthouse.

Some had already begun to arrive hours before his late afternoon appearance was scheduled to start. Trump also planned to fly to his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, to give remarks this evening.

The former president was arrested and appeared in court in New York in April as part of separate criminal case involving hush money that he is accused of paying to cover up an extramarital affair during the 2016 presidential election. Trump is facing additional potential charges in Georgia and Washington.

But he faces a potential yearslong prison sentence in the document case. It also has stood out for both the apparent volume of evidence amassed by prosecutors and the severity of the allegations.

Trump’s campaign has intensified his fundraising efforts in the meantime, including an email Tuesday morning with the subject line: “My last email before my arraignment.”