Trump pleads not guilty in classified documents case

Former U.S. President Donald Trump (C) raises his fist as he leaves Trump Tower for his arraignment at the Manhattan Criminal Court in New York, the United States, on April 4, 2023. (Xinhua)

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday pleaded not guilty in an indictment against him, in which he faces 37 federal charges for mishandling classified documents.

The indictment alleges that Trump was involved in unlawfully retaining government secrets as he left the White House in 2021 and conspired to obstruct justice.

Trump stored the classified documents in various locations, including "a ballroom, a bathroom and shower, an office space, his bedroom and a storage room" at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, which was "an active social club" not authorized for the storage, possession or discussion of the documents, according to the indictment.

At a federal courthouse in Miami, Trump's attorney Todd Blanche told the judge, "we most certainly enter a plea of not guilty."

Photo taken on Aug. 26, 2022 shows a page of a redacted version of the affidavit used to seek the search warrant on former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

Trump has said he is innocent and is unfairly targeted by prosecutors because he's running for president in 2024. Hundreds of people gathered nearby the court to show their support for the former U.S. president.

"Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of this country," Trump said in a speech after the court hearing.

"A corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges in which he and other presidents would've been guilty of -- right in the middle of a presidential campaign in which he was losing badly," he said.

During the speech, Trump vowed that if he wins in 2024, he will appoint a special prosecutor to investigate U.S. President Joe Biden and Biden's family.

The indictment comes about a month after a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing journalist E. Jean Carroll.

According to special counsel Jack Smith, who the Justice Department appointed to oversee an independent investigation of Trump, the former president is also being investigated for his involvement in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.