Amid the spectacle of former President Donald Trump’s arraignment, many less famous defendants arrived at Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday. The court had a full docket in the morning, with correction buses arriving full of people who were arrested the night before.
Court officials said there would be a reduced schedule in the afternoon, with some trials canceled and courtrooms taken over by members of the media.
Some defendants arriving at 100 Centre St. were surprised to learn they’d be in the same courthouse as Trump.
“I found out just now,” said Desean Martinez, as he entered the building for a 9 a.m. appearance for a charge he didn’t want to describe.
“I feel good he’s here, too,” Martinez said. “Because he did a lot of stuff more than me. I didn’t do nothing. He did a lot of things that wasn’t fair for Black people.”
His mother, Shawnell Martinez, was unhappy that Trump would not be placed in handcuffs.
“He’s not special. He did crime, he should be treated the same way,” she said. “If he did something wrong, he should be handcuffed going inside the courthouse.”
At the civil court building across the street, potential jurors shuffled past hundreds of news reporters as they lined up.
Glenn Richter came to observe a criminal trial and regarded the scene with a shrug.
“That's what happens in New York,” said Richter. “It's a big city and a lot of things happen.”
