Donald Trump was a norm-shattering American president during four tumultuous years in the White House. Now, with a Manhattan grand jury handing down a criminal indictment against him on Thursday evening, Trump and the US have once again hurtled into uncharted — possibly dangerous — territory.

The news of the grand jury’s vote upended recent speculation that Alvin Bragg, a first-term Manhattan district attorney, might be wobbling in his commitment to a divisive case launched four years ago by his predecessor, Cyrus Vance.

It also managed to jolt a nation seemingly inured to Trump’s chaos after accusations of Russian interference in the 2016 election, two impeachments, a refusal to participate in a peaceful transfer of power, and even a deadly insurrection.