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This page was edited by George Bowden and Jessica Murphy in Washington. From London, it's been Dulcie Lee, Andrew Humphrey and Nathan Williams.

Our writers were Jack Burgess, Laura Gozzi, Anna Boyd, Christy Cooney, Aoife Walsh, James Gregory and Emily McGarvey.

Thanks for joining us.

Image source, Reuters

It's been a long day - let's have a quick recap:

• Former President Donald Trump is set to appear in court next Tuesday after being indicted in New York
• We don't know exactly what the charges are yet - although they are linked to a payment made to former porn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about an adulterous affair with Trump, which he allegedly recorded as a business expense. He denies the affair and any wrongdoing
• Trump won't be in handcuffs when he appears in court but will have his fingerprints and a mugshot taken, and be brought before a judge
• Trump's said the indictment was "political persecution", former Vice President Mike Pence called it "an outrage" and Florida's Republican governor Ron DeSantis said it was "un-American"
• In response, the attorney in charge of the case, Alvin Bragg, said the charges had been brought by citizens of New York doing their civic duty - and neither the former president nor Congress could interfere
• President Joe Biden declined to comment
• US Capitol Police have said there will be an increased law enforcement presence around the Capitol in Washington in the run-up to Tuesday's hearing

Trump's indictment made headlines around the world - let's look at what people made of it:

Nomia Iqbal
North America correspondent in Boones Mill, Virginia

Away from the spectacle of the courthouse in Manhattan, this quiet part of Virginia really loves Donald Trump. At a Donald Trump merch store, people have travelled from outside of the state to visit.

Jay rode up on his motorbike from North Carolina.

“I saw the store and wanted to stop," he says. "I’m an even bigger supporter of Trump today than I was yesterday... because of this stupid indictment, it’s just politically motivated."

When I put to him this was voted on by American citizens doing their civic duty, he dismisses it as stitch up by "liberals".

The indictment has clearly fired up Donald Trump’s core supporters - who he has always relied on.

Some are sharing memes showing a sleeping giant waking up. But the big question is: will it get him the votes he needs to win back the White House?

Bill, another biker, thinks people could be put off. “I don’t think the American people will vote for an indicted person.”

His friend Kevin disagrees: “I voted for Trump twice and will again. Honestly I wish the election was this November.”

It’s often asked is there a red line for Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters. It would seem even becoming the first president ever to be indicted in this way, has made them more entrenched not less.

Image source, Reuters

We're hearing a bit more now about how next week's events are likely to play out. A law enforcement official has given the following timeline for former President Donald Trump's court appearance to CBS News, our US partner.

Monday

Trump will fly to New York on his plane, escorted by secret service agents who will stay with him all the way to Trump Tower in Manhattan.

Tuesday

Trump will again be escorted by a secret service detail, but this time to court.

The former president won't be in handcuffs, as the secret service and court authorities have "mitigated" that issue.

And after that?

Following his release from court, Trump's expected to return to his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida, on his plane.

A secret service detail will again escort him.

It's worth pointing out that this is said to be the plan as of now, and things could change as the weekend unfolds.

Image source, REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo

Former US President Donald Trump is set to appear in court next Tuesday after being indicted in New York.

A payment to ex-porn star Stormy Daniels is at the heart of the case. Daniels says she had an affair with Trump in 2006, which he denies.

Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet before the 2016 US election.

The case likely revolves around how this was recorded. The payment may violate laws about election financing.

Trump will be fingerprinted, have a mugshot photo taken and be brought before a judge.

Piers Morgan had been due to interview former porn star Stormy Daniels tonight on his TalkTV show, but he has just tweeted that , externalit's been postponed "due to some security issues that have arisen".

In case you need a reminder, Daniels is key to this case - she claims she had an adulterous affair with Donald Trump, and it is said she was paid $130,000 to keep quiet. The payment was legal, but Trump allegedly recorded it as a business expense. Falsifying business records is illegal in New York.

Morgan didn't give any further details, just adding: "Hope she's OK".

Demonstrations related to the indictment are expected across the country, US Capitol Police say in a statement, and there will be an increased law enforcement presence around the Capitol complex in Washington.

The police say there have been no specific or credible threats but add there is "potential for demonstration activity".

However, despite former President Trump's calls for protests against his indictment, the prevailing message from his most fervent supporters appears to be: stay home.

Fear of a repeat of the events of January 2021 have dissuaded many of those who would be out on the streets protesting over Trump's possible arrest.

Read more: Why Trump's supporters are wary of joining protests

American voters weigh-in on the Trump indictment, with opinions ranging from "it's an outrage" to it being "the best thing to happen".

Image source, Reuters

There have been discussions about whether Trump could be charged with a misdemeanour or felony for falsifying business records over a payment to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016.

We're still not sure of the exact charges as the details haven't been released.

A conviction on a misdemeanour would result in a fine, but for a felony charge it's a maximum sentence of four years in prison.

There's nothing illegal about Trump's lawyer paying Daniels to keep quiet about an alleged affair she had had with Trump in 2006.

"But if you're running for president, that is an election expenditure and must be reported as such in your public financial disclosures to the federal election commission - it was not," US law professor Richard Painter tells the BBC.

"New York is not a place for criminals to launder their money or falsify business records in order to cover up their own crimes, and that is the charge he is likely to face in this indictment," he says.

He says this could take a year or two and Trump will likely request an extension to the trial and stir up his political base.

"That's what authoritarians do, he'll try to turn this into a political circus."

Juan Merchan, the judge in Donald Trump's case, authorised Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg to disclose the existence of the indictment yesterday.

The indictment is the formal written accusation that Trump has committed a crime - and it's what was issued yesterday.

A copy of the approval for it to be released was obtained by CBS News, the BBC's US media partner.

Have a read for yourself:

Image source, CBS

Image source, USA Today

Donald Trump's lawyer earlier said the ex-president wouldn't be handcuffed for his court appearance on Tuesday.

We've now heard confirmation of this from a law enforcement official, who tells CBS News, the BBC's US partner, the issue has been "mitigated" between the New York court authorities and the Secret Service.

As to why, they say it's because the point of handcuffing is either: to prevent someone from running; prevent attack to others; or to keep control of the subject.

In all these cases, the source says Trump will be surrounded by federal agents - with "dozens if not over a hundred" involved in the operation.

Image source, REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch/File Photo

Former porn star Stormy Daniels has described being afraid of violent supporters of former US President Donald Trump, but says she isn't scared of Trump himself, The Times reports.

In an interview with the newspaper, external, just published in London, Daniels says she's hesitant to say she's frightened because "it kind of encourages the sharks".

However, she adds that "it's especially scary because Trump himself is inciting violence".

The Times notes she was speaking from an "undisclosed location" in the US.

When it comes to the former president and the prospect of facing him in court, she says "there's no way he could be scarier with his clothes on".

Her words are a slight contrast to the tone she struck last night, when Daniels thanked people on Twitter, external for their "support and love".

Nada Tawfik
BBC News

Donald Trump today began attacking the judge assigned to his case, as he attempts to undermine the credibility of the investigation and rally his base to his defence.

Judge Juan Merchan has presided over two cases of interest to Trump and the former president didn't like the outcome of either.

One was the Trump Organization's tax fraud trial, in which a jury found his namesake company guilty on 17 counts, including falsifying business records.

In a related case, Trump's former chief financial officer pleaded guilty to his role in the tax scheme as part of a deal with prosecutors.

Trump has complained about how his long-time employee was treated.

Earlier this year, Allen Weisselberg was led out of his sentencing hearing in handcuffs and transported to Rikers Island jail to serve his five-month sentence.

In a message posted online today, Trump accused the judge, without evidence, of strong-arming his CFO to accept the plea deal and of treating his company viciously.

Reality Check

Image source, Getty Images

After Donald Trump’s indictment, his son Eric Trump tweeted, external: “This is what you get for giving a crooked politician $1m. Alvin Bragg is a Soros puppet.”

There have been similar posts trying to discredit Bragg - the district attorney leading the case against the former president - claiming he's somehow under the control of the billionaire philanthropist George Soros.

There is a financial link between Bragg and Soros but it is more tenuous than the claim makes out.

In May 2021, Soros donated $1m to Color of Change, a criminal justice group, according to the campaign finance website Open Secrets, external.

Six days earlier, the group had endorsed Bragg, external in the election for New York district attorney - pledging to spend $1m on campaigning for him.

But it spent $4.6m on other political candidates that year too, according to Open Secrets, external.

And Soros had donated to Colour of Change before, giving $450,000 in 2016-18, external. His Democracy PAC fundraising group gave $2m in 2020, according to official figures.

A spokesman for Soros, told the New York Times, external that neither Soros nor his fundraising group had contributed directly to Bragg’s campaign, and the two “have never met in person or spoken by telephone, email, Zoom, etc".

Donald Trump is unlikely to spend any time in jail as a result of the hush money paid to Stormy Daniels, according to one federal defence attorney.

Speaking to BBC News, Ronald Chapman II explained that while paying hush money is not in itself illegal, it can become a felony - punishable by at least a year in jail - if the payment is disguised as a business expense or used to cover up other criminal activity.

But he added: “My guess is that Donald Trump is unlikely to spend a day in jail.

"I believe the counts that he may be charged with are either four- or five-year felony offences, meaning that is the maximum that the worst potential offender could spend in jail for those offences.

“Typically, people with those low-level felonies would receive a probation-type sentence, a fine. And given that the conduct isn’t particularly egregious in this case, I don’t believe that he would see the inside of a jail cell at all.”

BBC Monitoring

Image source, Weibo

Like many of us around the world, Chinese social media users closely watched the drama unfold on Weibo - China’s equivalent of Twitter - and speculated on its impact on Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.

State media promoted the story there and one of the most popular hashtags relating to the story - "Trump is expected to turn himself in next week" - racked up more than 290 million views and 7,000 comments.

"He has brought us so much fun, so he cannot be given a light sentence," one user joked.

Some also saw China benefiting from Trump's indictment, as he is perceived to be more effective at containing China than President Biden.

The nationalist state-run Global Times daily, meanwhile, ran an English-language piece, external citing experts who said that Trump's indictment "further revealed the dysfunction of the American political system".

It also warned that "more violent protests from Trump's followers" could follow.

Joe Tacopina, Donald Trump's attorney, says he believes the former US President is "being persecuted politically" with his indictment.

Watch what he had to say below:

Is the indictment bad news or good news for Trump?published at 17:41 British Summer Time 31 March 2023

17:41 BST 31 March 2023

Katty Kay
US special correspondent

Don't trust anyone who tells you they know the political implications of this indictment.

I certainly don't, and nor do they. We don't know the charges, we don't know the evidence and we don't know how the trial will unfold.

Since the indictment was announced, I've heard from people close to the former president who've told me this is bad news for Democrats because this is a weak case, the weakest of all the potential cases against Trump.

I've also heard from Democrats who say the spectacle of Trump on trial is bound to weaken him as he runs for the White House, and the reminder of his alleged affair with a former porn star will turn off evangelical Christians who once supported him.

Two things can be true at once.

The political question will be in the raw numbers: does it win him more voters or lose him voters?

The more important question for America is whether this trial, whenever it occurs, can be removed from the political realm and be seen as a fair legal process.

You can catch Katty on an emergency episode of Americast here.