A timeline of Donald Trump’s many (alleged) crimes and convictions

It's hard to believe that Donald Trump has only been back in office for a year, given the relentless news cycle he seems so obsessed with commanding (once a reality star, always a reality star?). From ordering especially high numbers of thuggish ICE agents into states that voted for his Democratic rival, Kamala Harris, to belittling allies in Europe (much to the delight of Russia's President Putin), Trump sadly shows no signs of ending the chaos that is impacting the lives of millions the world over.

Outside of these vastly consequential decisions, the 79-year-old's critics are also quick to point out that Trump is the first twice-impeached president with a criminal conviction to his name – and are now calling for him to be impeached a third time (something which could theoretically be possible if his party loses in the mid-term elections this coming November).

Alongside the two previous impeachments, Trump also has 34 felony counts to his name and one official conviction (plus six instances of bankruptcy). Accusations levelled against the President range from raping a teenager in 1994 to rigging the 2016 election and allegations that he incited and encouraged violence that led to the 6 January 2021 storming of Capitol Hill.

So, what has Trump actually been accused – and convicted – of over the years? Here’s a timeline recapping the key cases...

(Note: As of early 2026, no further criminal trials involving Trump are scheduled to take place while he is president, although appeals and civil enforcement actions remain ongoing.)

If you’ve seen the Trump-based film, The Apprentice, you’ll be familiar with this story. Back in 1973 when Trump was simply known for his endeavours in New York real estate rather than dividing a nation and trashing the US' reputation internationally, he was sued by the Department of Justice (along with his father, Fred Trump) for discriminating against Black renters who wanted to rent in buildings he owned. The case was settled in 1975 with no admission of guilt, but Trump was required to sign a document agreeing to change his rental practices.

Over the years, more than two dozen women have gone on record to accuse Trump of predatory and inappropriate behaviour towards them, ranging from groping to rape, dating as far back as the 1980s and spanning right up until the mid-00s.

Those who’ve accused Trump of wrongdoing range from a woman who says she was just a teenager at the time of being violently raped by Trump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, to a journalist who says she was assaulted while interviewing the Trumps at home in Mar-a-Lago in 2005 (when Trump's wife, Melania, was pregnant with their son, Barron).

In papers relating to their divorce, Trump’s first wife Ivana Trump also accused the President of rape, something she later retracted in a statement saying: "As a woman, I felt violated, as the love and tenderness, which he normally exhibited towards me, was absent. I referred to this as a ‘rape,’ but I do not want my words to be interpreted in a literal or criminal sense."

Trump has repeatedly denied all allegations of wrongdoing.

While making a cameo on the soap Days Of Our Lives, Trump spoke to Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush and was recorded saying, "I don't even wait and when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything... Grab 'em by the pussy. You can do anything." Many likened it to Trump encouraging and/or admitting sexual assault and the tape was used as evidence during one of his trials against E Jean Carroll in October 2022.

When the tape was made public in 2016, Trump responded by saying, “I said it, I was wrong, and I apologise.”

In one allegation, a woman known only by the pseudonym Katie Johnson accused Trump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein of raping her when she was just 13 years old, back in 1994. In a formal declaration, Johnson wrote: "Immediately following this rape, Defendant Trump threatened me that, were I ever to reveal any of the details of Trump's sexual and physical abuse of me, my family and I would be physically harmed if not killed."

Trump’s lawyer labelled the allegations as "categorically untrue" and "frivolous".

Initially the case was dismissed. It was refiled in the September of that same year, but the lawsuit was withdrawn by Johnson two months later. She also pulled out of a public appearance shortly beforehand, saying she feared for her safety.

Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump pose for a photo at Mar-a-Lago in 1997

Journalist Natasha Stoynoff claims she was assaulted at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate by him while working as a reporter for PEOPLE magazine in 2005. She’d been sent to Trump’s Florida home to cover his wedding anniversary with a then-pregnant Melania. During a house tour, Stoynoff alleges Trump forcibly kissed her and only stopped when a staff member entered the room.

“Trump shut the door behind us. I turned around, and within seconds he was pushing me against the wall and forcing his tongue down my throat,” Stoynoff said in a 2016 essay for PEOPLE about the apparent incident.

A Trump spokeswoman responded to the article by saying “this never happened”.

October 2016: Stormy Daniels is paid hush money

Adult entertainer Stormy Daniels is paid $130,000 by Trump’s then-lawyer, Michael Cohen, in order to keep quiet about having slept with Trump (something he denies happened). Apparently, this was due to fears that if the story broke, it could harm Trump’s reputation and his first bid for the White House.

Trump has always denied knowledge of Daniels receiving such a payment at the hands of Cohen, who in turn claims he acted very much under Trump’s instructions.

May 2017 - March 2019: Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation

Following accusations that Trump’s 2016 election campaign involved illegally conspiring with Russian agents, former FBI investigator, Robert Mueller, spent almost two years investigating any possible wrongdoing.

Mueller’s team were unable to find enough evidence to prove Trump’s team directly “colluded” with Russia, but it ascertained that Russia did interfere with the first US election that Trump won by spreading mis- and disinformation online. Some of Trump’s known associates, such as Paul Manafort and Roger Stone, were ultimately convicted but Trump was not. He denied any wrongdoing.

April 2018: Trump University found to be a ‘sham’

Between 2005 and 2010, Trump ran a costly course promising to help real estate hopefuls break into the business, something he called Trump University – only its false promises of success proved a total flop. In 2018, a judge ruled that Trump must pay out $25 million as part of a settlement that saw some students get part of their money back.

ABC reported that New York Attorney General, Eric T. Schneiderman, said of the case, "Judge Curiel's order finalising the $25 million Trump University settlement means victims of Donald Trump's fraudulent university will finally receive the relief they deserve. This settlement marked a stunning reversal by President Trump, who for years refused to compensate the victims of his sham university [...] My office won't hesitate to hold those who commit fraud accountable, no matter how rich or powerful they may be."

Again, this case was settled without any admission of wrongdoing on Trump’s part and a Trump Organization spokesman at the time said there was no "no doubt" Trump University would prevail if the case had gone on to trial, but a "resolution of these matters" the top priority so Trump could focus on his role as POTUS.

In an article for New York Magazine, former ELLE columnist E Jean Carroll claimed Trump raped in her in the spring of 1996 while she was working in a plush department store, Bergdorf Goodman. As part of the powerful imagery accompanying the article, Carroll wore the same all-black outfit she says she was dressed in on the day of the alleged rape. She also discussed the incident in her book, What Do We Need Men For?

Trump denied the rape ever occurred and said Carroll’s story was “fake, like the author”.

E Jean Carroll arrives for her civil trial against Donald Trump on 8 May 2023

18 December 2019: Trump is impeached for the first time

Trump is charged with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, after being accused of pressuring Ukraine to launch an investigation into his political rival, Joe Biden and his family (by threatening to withhold military aid). The House of Representatives impeached Trump in December 2019, however the Senate (which had a Republican majority) voted to acquit him in February 2020.

November 2020 - January 2021: Trump tries to overthrow the 2020 election results

After losing to Biden, Trump and his team repeated false information and claimed he lost due to voter fraud. He also also tried to coerce Republican state officials into throwing out legitimate results, as they weren’t to his liking. This, along with plenty of fiery social media commentary, resulted in a group of die-hard Trump supporters descending on the Capitol on 6 January 2021 and rioting – resulting in the death of a police officer who was assaulted by rioters and a Trump supporter, who was shot at by the authorities.

A handful of officers who responded to the riots also ended their own lives within a year of the event, due to the trauma that followed.

13 January 2021: Trump is impeached again following the Capitol riot

Two months after losing out to Biden, Trump found himself accused of inciting a violent attack on the Capitol carried out by his supporters on 6 January 2021. Trump was accused of fanning the flames of violence through his posts on social media, claiming the election he lost to Biden was rigged and a miscarriage of justice.

Trump was once again acquitted by the Senate a month later.

Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they push barricades to storm the US Capitol in Washington DC on 6 January 2021

May 2021: Trump is asked about missing classified documents

It’s reported that in May 2021, the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) contacted Trump’s legal team alerting them to the fact that two boxes of classified documents had gone AWOL following his departure from the White House.

January – August 2022: Missing documents found at Trump’s home

After 15 boxes of unauthorised materials were found in Trump’s possession in January of 2022, the FBI continued an investigation that culminated in a raid on Mar-a-Lago on 8 August 2022. Many more classified documents were unearthed.

November 2022 - Spring 2023: E Jean Carroll wins her case

After initially struggling to build a case against Trump, largely due to his presidential immunity at the time, Carroll filed a defamation lawsuit against Trump – who called her a ‘liar’ after her New York Magazine article on her alleged assault – and made a claim for battery in November 2022. Following a trial in the spring of 2023, a jury found Trump was indeed liable for sexually abusing Carroll and defaming her by falsely denying it, which impacted on her reputation.

Trump was not found liable for rape but rather for sexual abuse. However, when Trump later filed a countersuit against Carroll, the judge dismissed it and said Carroll’s rape accusation was “substantially true”. In total, Carroll was awarded $88 million in damages.

13 January 2023: The Trump Organization is fined $1.6million

The Trump Organization (not Trump personally) was convicted of tax fraud and fined $1.6 million in relation to 17 charges, which included falsifying documents and allegedly inflating asset values for loans and insurance purposes, while simultaneously undervaluing them for tax purposes. As part of this case, Trump’s other business practices were also investigated.

June 2023: Trump charged with 37 federal counts relating to classified documents

Following the FBI raid and recovery of classified information, Trump was hit with 37 federal counts related to the unlawful possession, retention, and mishandling of classified documents, as well as obstruction of justice for attempting to hide the documents. However, the case was thrown out after his second election win.

13 March 2024: Trump charged with trying to overturn election results in Georgia

A case against Trump, along with 18 others, begins, hooked on accusations that Trump tried to pressure Georgia’s Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, into overturning the vote count which saw him lose the 2020 election to Joe Biden.

In this incident, there were 13 felonies levelled against Trump, spanning racketeering, conspiracy, and false statements. He has denied wrongdoing. This case was later dropped following the 2024 election.

30 May 2024: Trump is found guilty on 34 counts of fraud

Trump was found guilty by a 12-person jury of 34 counts of fraud in relation to the paying off of Stormy Daniels. During the trial, Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen alleged that he paid Daniels the money $130,000 (£106,000) from his own account at Trump’s instruction and under the premise that he would be reimbursed. Trump denied this, but the court found Trump had repaid the sum in instalments falsely recorded as 'legal expenses'.

The trial was not focussed on the paying off of Daniels with hush money (that in itself is not a crime), but rather the falsifying of legal documents relating to it and on Trump violating a New York law on corporate record-keeping.

According to the BBC, Trump was also accused of election interference by paying the hush money, as it was viewed as an attempt to prevent voters from accessing vital information about him and his character. Each of the 34 counts relates to a different falsified document.

10 January 2025: Trump gets an 'unconditional discharge'

On 10 January, Trump received an 'unconditional discharge' from Judge Juan Merchan in relation to his 34 counts of fraud, which essentially means while he is still guilty in the eyes of the law and has a conviction to his name, he has avoided any jail time or probation. Some outlets reported that this sentencing could impact Trump's ability to travel to other countries which have strict laws preventing convicted felons from entering, but that does not appear to be the case and the President is continuing to operate with impunity.

Trump appears remotely for his sentencing hearing before Judge Juan Merchan with his attorney, Todd Blanche (10 January 2025)

During the video call in which the judge relayed the decision, Trump appeared with his lawyer and declared that he is "totally innocent" and lamented that he had been treated poorly by the judicial system, implying the case was only brought against him for political purposes.

"I would like to explain that I was treated very, very unfairly, and I thank you very much," he stressed.

January 2025 - Present: Litigation widens and new legal battles unfold

Throughout the rest of 2025 and into early 2026, Trump continued to face legal problems on several fronts — not just over his New York conviction. He pressed ahead with an appeal against the guilty verdict in the hush-money case, arguing that mistakes were made during the trial and that he should have been protected from prosecution because of his position as President. However, the conviction itself has not been overturned and still stands while the appeal is ongoing.

Separately, Trump’s presidency has been repeatedly challenged in the courts. Judges have been asked to block or review a range of his policies, including moves on immigration, birthright citizenship, climate rules and civil rights. By early 2026, hundreds of legal cases had been filed against different parts of his agenda, meaning his administration has spent much of the year fighting court battles alongside governing.

Jennifer Savin

Features Editor

 Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.