Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced that his office “has decided to drop all charges against Donald Trump.”
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Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is seen at a news conference Oct. 11, 2022 in New York. (AP)
Alvin Bragg didn’t say he would drop charges against Donald Trump; this video’s a deepfake
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This video is a deepfake, manipulated from a video of a New York University School of Law event in 2022.
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A grand jury is still considering whether to bring charges against former President Donald Trump in relation to a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Social media users are circulating a video that supposedly shows Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg making a notable announcement about former President Donald Trump.
The video, shared March 24 on TikTok, appears to show Bragg saying, "It is with an extremely heavy heart that I must announce that the New York district attorney’s office, after an extensive, thorough investigation, has decided to drop all charges against Donald Trump. I hereby resign from my position as the district attorney of New York."
TikTok identified this video as part of its efforts to counter inauthentic, misleading or false content. (Read more about PolitiFact's partnership with TikTok.)
The video is a deepfake, manipulated from a video of a New York University School of Law event in 2022.
Trump might face indictment related to a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels; he has claimed on social media that his arrest is imminent. But no criminal charges have been filed against Trump. A grand jury is still considering charges against him and was scheduled to resume work March 27 after a brief break.
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A Google reverse-image search shows that the video was manipulated from footage of Bragg taken during a Jan. 20, 2022, question-and-answer forum at the New York University School of Law. At the time, Bragg had just been sworn in as district attorney. He did not mention Trump during his remarks.
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Before surfacing on TikTok, the video was shared March 23 on Twitter and Telegram by conservative activist Jack Posobiec. The caption called it a "precreated speech from next week." Twitter’s Community Notes marked it as satire.
The satire label did not appear on the video when it was reshared on TikTok and other platforms.
We rate the claim that Bragg announced that the district attorney’s office is dropping charges against Donald Trump Pants on Fire!
Our Sources
TikTok video, March 24, 2023
Axios, Timeline: The probe into Trump's alleged hush money payment to Stormy Daniels, March 20, 2023
The New York Times, Prosecutors Signal Criminal Charges for Trump Are Likely, March 9, 2023
Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, D.A. Bragg Delivers Remarks at NYU School of Law, Jan. 21, 2022
The Associated Press, Altered clip of Manhattan DA Bragg spreads falsehoods amid Trump case, March 26, 2023
PolitiFact, Fact-checking Trump’s false and misleading claims in Waco, Texas, rally, March 26, 2023
CBS News, Manhattan grand jury investigating Trump "hush money" resumes Monday, March 27, 2023
Jack Posobiec tweet, March 23, 2023
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Alvin Bragg didn’t say he would drop charges against Donald Trump; this video’s a deepfake
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