A New York state judge officially postponed President-elect Donald Trump’s sentencing date Friday for the 34 felonies a jury convicted the former president of in May.
The order from Judge Juan Merchan indefinitely postponing a sentencing hearing that had been scheduled for next week was something of a formality after New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Tuesday he would not oppose Trump’s motion to suspend the criminal case during Trump’s upcoming term in the Oval Office.
Trump’s attorneys and prosecutors jointly asked for a delay on Nov. 12 as Bragg’s office determined how and if they would proceed following Trump’s election victory, which created an unprecedented situation for the court as Trump became the first convict to win a presidential election.
Legal experts have held for decades that a sitting president cannot face criminal prosecution.
In a statement Friday afternoon, Trump campaign communications director Steven Cheung asserted the election result this month showed voters rejected the criminal charges against Trump.
“President Trump won a landslide victory as the American People have issued a mandate to return him to office and dispose of all remnants of the Witch Hunt cases,” Cheun wrote. “All of the sham lawfare attacks against President Trump are now destroyed and we are focused on Making America Great Again.”
Merchan also granted the Trump defense team’s request to file a motion to dismiss the charges altogether. He set a Dec. 2 deadline for Trump’s brief arguing to dismiss the case, with prosecutors’ response due a week later on Dec. 9. Bragg said Tuesday he would fight Trump’s attempt to dismiss the entire case.
A jury convicted Trump of falsifying business records by paying hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels to conceal an alleged tryst. Trump sought to keep disclosure of the affair, which he denies took place, from voters during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Each of the 34 convictions is punishable by up to four years in state prison.
The case was the only one of four prosecutions against Trump to reach the trial stage in the nearly four years since he left the White House.
U.S. Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith is winding down the two federal cases against the president-elect, consistent with longstanding department policy not to prosecute sitting presidents. Smith is reportedly planning to resign before Trump takes office.
Last updated 1:44 p.m., Nov. 22, 2024
Kentucky Lantern is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: [email protected]. Follow Kentucky Lantern on Facebook and X.
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Previously Published on kentuckylantern with Creative Commons License
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