The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s hush-money case in Manhattan has postponed sentencing until after the 2024 election, meaning voters won’t know whether the former president will face prison time if he goes to the polls.
Trump was the Republican candidate Convicted in May on 34 counts of falsifying business records. A New York Supreme Court judge in Friday’s ruling Juan Merchant Said that the sentence will now take place on November 26. It was set for September 18, about seven weeks before Election Day.
Trump’s team requested a delay, and it was granted without objection from the Manhattan District Attorney’s office. His lawyers argued that sentencing before the election would unfairly affect voter perceptions and, by extension, the outcome of the race. Trump is the first former president to be criminally indicted, a situation made more extraordinary by the fact that he is again running for the Oval Office. “This matter stands alone in a unique place in the history of this nation,” Marchan wrote.
Murchan acknowledged the political sensitivity of sentencing: “The decision to postpone the motion and sentence, if necessary, should remove any suggestion that the court is seeking to benefit from any decision or sentence imposed, or any political party.” and or cause disadvantage to any candidate for any post.
A decision to suspend the sentence pending the outcome of the trial is also being considered. In requesting the delay, Trump’s lawyers argued they needed more time to weigh next steps after Merchan’s expected ruling on his request to overturn the ruling on immunity grounds. Merchan is set to rule on that request on Sept. 16 — two days before sentencing is scheduled.
Trump has claimed that the recent US Supreme Court Ruling on Presidential Immunitywhich gave broad protection to the conduct of the President, May affect his New York state case and may give grounds for overturning the conviction. However, lawyers have argued that the Supreme Court’s ruling on the president’s immunity has “no bearing” on the state’s case related to a sex-scandal cover-up before he was elected president.
Trump’s conviction in New York stemmed from his involvement in a scheme to cover up a $130,000 payment made to former adult film star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election. The payment was made to prevent her from publicly discussing the alleged sexual encounter with Trump. A Manhattan jury found that Trump falsified business records to conceal the nature of the payments, a conviction that carries a potential sentence of up to four years in prison. However, as a first-time offender, Trump could receive a lighter sentence or probation.
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