Donald Trump was criminally indicted for a third time on Aug. 1 as a Washington grand jury voted to prosecute the former President on four counts related to his efforts to remain in power after losing the 2020 election and his role in the events leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021 storming of the U.S. Capitol.
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00:00 Good evening. Today an indictment was unsealed charging Donald J. Trump with
00:08 conspiring to defraud the United States, conspiring to disenfranchise voters, and
00:14 conspiring and attempting to obstruct an official proceeding. The indictment was
00:20 issued by a grand jury of citizens here in the District of Columbia and it sets
00:25 forth the crimes charged in detail. I encourage everyone to read it in full.
00:32 The attack on our nation's capital on January 6th, 2021, was an unprecedented
00:39 assault on the seat of American democracy. As described in the indictment,
00:44 it was fueled by lies. Lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing a
00:51 bedrock function of the U.S. government, the nation's process of collecting,
00:55 counting, and certifying the results of the presidential election. The men and
01:03 women of law enforcement who defended the U.S. Capitol on January 6th are
01:07 heroes. They are patriots and they are the very best of us. They did not just
01:14 defend a building or the people sheltering in it. They put their lives in
01:20 the line to defend who we are as a country and as a people. They defended
01:25 the very institutions and principles that define the United States. Since the
01:31 attack on our Capitol, the Department of Justice has remained committed to
01:35 ensuring accountability for those criminally responsible for what happened
01:39 that day. This case is brought consistent with that commitment and our
01:44 investigation of other individuals continues. In this case, my office will
01:50 seek a speedy trial so that our evidence can be tested in court and judged by a
01:55 jury of citizens. In the meantime, I must emphasize that the indictment is
02:01 only an allegation and that the defendant must be presumed innocent
02:05 until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
02:13 I would like to thank the members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation who
02:17 are working on this investigation with my office as well as the many career
02:22 prosecutors and law enforcement agents from around the country who have worked
02:26 on previous January 6th investigations.
02:29 These women and men are public servants of the very highest order, and it is a
02:34 privilege to work alongside them.
02:36 Thank you.
02:38 Thank you.