Trump’s punishment for the Stormy Daniels hush money conviction was postponed until after the election.
Merchan’s sentencing was set for September 18, but Trump had urged Merchan to postpone it until after the November presidential election. The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg declined to comment on Trump’s request.Merchan said that by approving Trump’s request, he was treating the Republican front-runner equally to everyone else.
In the Friday ruling, Merchan wrote, “Sentence adjournments are regularly granted, frequently multiple times, in any number of other criminal matters pending in this courthouse, especially when unopposed, for reasons ranging from personal circumstances to the scheduling needs of the parties involved.”
“Given the unique facts and circumstances of this case, there is no reason why this defendant should be treated any differently than any other,” Merchan said. It was underlined by a representative for Bragg’s office that Trump had been found guilty. “The Manhattan D.A.’s Office stands ready for sentencing on the new date set by the court,” the spokeswoman stated.
A spokesman for Trump, Steven Cheung, stated that there should be no punishment at all, referring to the matter as an “election interference witch hunt” that ought to be dropped in light of the Supreme Court’s July 1 ruling on presidential immunity.
On May 30, Trump was found guilty of 34 different counts of manipulating business documents to conceal payments of hush money made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels on his behalf prior to the 2016 election. Prosecutors claimed that Trump didn’t want voters to know about Daniels’ 2006 sex claim, which Trump disputes.
Though legal experts predict that Trump would likely receive either no prison time or a very short sentence behind bars, the president has pledged to challenge his conviction, which could possibly land him in prison for many years.
Trump’s justification for a postponed punishment
In the event that Merchan rules against him and sentencing is still necessary, Trump contended that the sentence should be postponed in part so he can appeal the expected ruling on whether to overturn the entire verdict based on presidential immunity. One week after Election Day and two weeks prior to the new sentence date, on November 12, Merchan announced on Friday that he will make his judgment regarding immunity.
According to Trump, the conviction is voidable due to a Supreme Court decision that prohibits the introduction of specific proof of official presidential activities in a prosecution involving a former president. He claims that some evidence from his hush money prosecution violated that decision, including talks and calls he had while serving as president.
Trump is contesting the evidence, but Bragg’s office has defended his conviction, saying in a court statement that it “constitutes only a sliver of the mountains of testimony and documentary proof that the jury considered.” How seven battleground states are polling for the presidential election between Trump and Harris
There are exactly two months left till Election Day as of this Thursday. President Joe Biden formally withdrew from the campaign on July 21 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, following the June 27 debate against former President Donald Trump.
Since then, the vice presidential candidates have been selected, and the Republican and Democratic National Conventions have both been held. There is still one unanswered question: Will Trump and JD Vance or Harris and Tim Walz be the next president and vice president of the United States?
Polls and poll averages can provide some insight into the present status of the presidential campaign, despite the fact that they vary and change frequently depending on which poll you look at. average of polls in states that are battlegrounds, Here are three national polling averages and seven significant battleground state averages for the presidential campaign as of September 5, 11 a.m.