Which criminal charges were brought against Donald Trump and his associates and what laws do they reference?

1. New York hush‑money case — falsifying business records and related state law

The Manhattan indictment originally charged Trump with 34 counts of first‑degree falsifying business records tied to payments made surrounding the 2016 election and how those payments were recorded by his company, a state‑law offense at the heart of the prosecution; reporting indicates the trial proceeded in 2024 and, per later summaries, resulted in convictions in that case ^{[1] [5] [6]}.

2. Federal Mar‑a‑Lago documents case — classified materials, false statements, obstruction

Special Counsel filings and reporting show a Southern District of Florida federal indictment alleging roughly 40 counts that include unlawful retention of classified documents, false statements about the documents, and conspiracy or obstruction claims related to efforts to prevent the government from recovering sensitive materials — charges rooted in federal statutes governing classified information, false statements, and obstruction of justice ^{[1] [3] [2]}.

3. D.C. federal case over January 6 — conspiracy, fraud, obstruction of official proceeding

The Justice Department’s D.C. indictment alleges that Trump conspired to defraud the United States, sought to disenfranchise voters, and corruptly obstructed an official proceeding (the Electoral College certification), charges that invoke federal statutes criminalizing conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of Congress’s joint session ^[1].

4. Georgia state prosecution — election interference and state counts against co‑conspirators

In Georgia, a state grand jury returned an indictment accusing Trump and 18 alleged co‑conspirators of a multi‑count scheme to overturn the state’s 2020 result; the filings in Atlanta originally listed more counts against Trump that were later pared back, but the case centers on state election‑related crimes and alleged coordinated misconduct ^{[1] [4]}.

5. Who else was charged and the aggregate tallies

Prosecutors have charged numerous aides and allies across these matters — from Michael Cohen’s testimony in New York to guilty pleas by multiple lawyers in Georgia — and watchdog tallies counted roughly 88–91 personal charges against Trump across the four prosecutions as of mid‑2024 ^{[4] [7]}.

6. What laws and statutory themes are invoked across the cases

Collectively, the prosecutions rely on state falsifying‑records statutes in New York; federal statutes criminalizing unlawful retention of national defense and classified information, false statements, and obstruction in the Mar‑a‑Lago matter; federal conspiracy and obstruction statutes in the D.C. case tied to certification of the Electoral College; and Georgia state election and related criminal statutes for the Atlanta indictment ^{[6] [3] [2] [1]}.

7. Contested terrain: defenses, immunity claims, and politicization accusations

Defense teams have raised arguments ranging from lack of criminal intent to assertions of presidential immunity and have sought procedural delays tied to political calendars, while outside observers and advocacy groups characterize some actions as politicized or retaliatory — criticisms documented by civil‑liberty and watchdog groups even as prosecutors insist charges are grounded in statutory violations and evidence ^{[6] [8] [9]}.

8. Immediate legal and political implications

The constellation of statutes and counts yields complex litigation over mens rea, statutory interpretation, and immunity doctrines; public trackers and legal analysts warn the docket remains fluid as appeals, superseding indictments, plea deals for co‑defendants, and rulings on immunity or other pretrial issues can reshape which counts survive to trial or conviction ^{[3] [7]}.