Trump must be sentenced in the case of hush money, the judge did not sign the prison By Reuters

Written by Luc Cohen

NEW YORK (Reuters) – President-elect Donald Trump will be sentenced on Jan. 10 in a criminal trial in which he was convicted on charges related to hush money paid to a porn star, but it’s not easy. to face jail time or other penalties. the judge said on Friday.

Judge Juan Merchan’s ruling means that Trump will be required to appear in court just 10 days before his inauguration on January 20 – an unprecedented situation in American history. Before Trump, no US president – former or sitting – had been impeached or convicted.

The judge said Trump, 78, could appear at his sentencing in person or in person.

He wrote that he was not inclined to sentence Trump to prison, and that a sentence of “unconditional release” — meaning no bonds, fines, or probation — would be “the most effective solution.” .”

The case stemmed from a $130,000 payment that Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet about sex she said she had with Trump, which refuse. A jury in May found Trump guilty of falsifying records to hide the payment before the 2016 election.

Entry of the ruling would open the way for Trump to appeal. Merchan acknowledged his decision that Trump has made clear he intends to appeal.

In a post on his Social Media account early Saturday, Trump said he has never falsified business reports.

“It’s a false accusation, made by a corrupt judge who is doing the work of the Biden/Harris Justice Department,” Trump wrote. “He created a case where there was none.”

Merchan announced his intention to rule on denying Trump’s motion to dismiss the case because of his victory in the presidential election. Trump’s defense lawyers had argued that having a trial to impeach him during his presidency would hamper his ability to govern.

Merchan rejected that argument, writing that setting aside the court’s ruling would “undermine the Constitution in immeasurable ways.”

“The defendant’s status as President-elect does not require a strong and ‘extraordinary’ request for (court) power to issue a motion (for dismissal),” Merchan wrote in the decision.

Merchan also rejected Trump’s argument in a Dec. 3 court hearing that the firing was justified because “his social and financial contributions to this city and Nation are too numerous to count.”

Acknowledging Trump’s service as president, the judge said Trump’s public statements affecting the justice system were also a factor in his decision to determine how Trump’s background would affect the decision.

Merchan condemned what he called “relentless and unproven attacks” against the integrity of the criminal trial, and noted that he had been found guilty of 10 counts of defamation during the breach trial. frequently an order barring out-of-court statements about witnesses. and others.

“The defendant has made great efforts to spread on social media and other forums his disrespect for judges, courts, grand juries and the justice system in general,” Merchan wrote.

“The background and history of the defendant based on the Constitution and the Third Branch of the government must be analyzed,” the judge said, referring to the jury. “In that way, it doesn’t support him.”

‘THE ULTIMATE CURE’

A Manhattan jury in May found Trump guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal a payment to Daniels. He had pleaded not guilty and called the case an attempt by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the Democratic prosecutor who brought the charges, to damage his 2024 campaign.

Trump’s sentencing was originally scheduled for July 11, 2024, but has been pushed back several times. On Thursday, Merchan said Trump’s request in August that sentencing be delayed until after the election suggested he had agreed to a transitional sentence.

“Any Defendant may have that circumstances have changed as a result of the Defendant’s victory in the Presidential election, however simple, it is irrelevant,” Merchan wrote.

Bragg did not object to delaying judgment until after the election. Merchan in September pushed it back to Nov. 26.

After Trump defeated Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5, the judge delayed the sentence indefinitely to determine the next steps.

Bragg’s office argued that there are short-term “extreme remedies” to overturn the jury’s conviction that would ease Trump’s concerns about being sidetracked by a criminal trial while serving as president. and the president, such as delaying the sentence until after Trump leaves the White House in 2029. .

Merchan wrote Thursday that he found the alternative “less desirable” than judging Trump before the inauguration.

A HOLDER A HOLDER

Trump on December 16th lost a separate effort to overturn the hush money judgment in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s July 1st ruling that presidents cannot be criminally prosecuted for of their official acts, and that evidence of their official acts cannot be introduced in criminal proceedings. human behavior.

Rejecting Trump’s motion to dismiss, Merchan said the prosecutor because of “personal actions to falsify business records does not risk interfering with the authority and work of the executive branch.”

False business reports are punishable by up to four years in prison, but imprisonment is not required. Before his election victory, legal experts said it was unlikely that Trump would be jailed because of his lack of criminal history and age.

Trump was indicted in three other federal and state criminal cases in 2023: one involving classified documents he kept after leaving office and two others involving his impeachment attempt his loss of the 2020 election.

He pleaded not guilty in all three cases. The Justice Department moved to dismiss two federal cases after Trump’s election victory.

Trump’s criminal trial in Georgia over allegations stemming from his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in that state has become a mess.