The main purpose of the arraignment is to inform the defendant of the criminal charges against him or her.

At this first court appearance, the defendant (or his or her attorney) enters a plea of "Guilty" or "Not Guilty." Typically, the defendant pleads "Not Guilty" to begin defending the case.

Former President Donald Trump will be arraigned today in a New York criminal court after a grand jury voted to indict him last week.

Here's what we're following:

• Surrender: The former president is in New York and expected to turn himself in to the DA's office sometime today.

• Arraignment: Trump will appear at 2:15 p.m. ET before Juan Merchan, the same judge who presided over the closely watched criminal tax fraud case against Trump's company.

• The charges: We won't know the exact charges Trump is facing until the indictment is unsealed — which is likely to happen at the arraignment hearing.

• Speech: Trump plans to fly back to Florida this evening for a speech. The 2024 presidential candidate has already raised $7 million in fundraising from the indictment news, his team says.

Source: NPR