President-elect Donald Trump’s court date for sentencing in the hush-money case was scheduled today for Friday, January 10th by Judge Juan Merchan, who presided over the criminal trial last year. Donald Trump’s conviction made him the first President to be tried on felony charges. He is also the first to be found guilty, with a jury concluding on May 30th of last year that he falsified records in his first year in office to hide a $130,000 payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. (During the trial, Trump also made history as the first US President to be held in contempt of court, on April 15th and April 30th.)
Since the verdict, the sentencing has been delayed multiple times due to a variety of circumstances. His first sentencing date of July 11th was delayed, after a Supreme Court decision from July 1st on presidential immunity created doubt as to the legality of bringing charges against Trump in the first place. The sentencing date has since been pushed forward from September 18th and again from November 26th, due to proximity of the date to the election, and the implications of Trump’s victory on November 5th, respectively.
While still setting the date for sentencing, Judge Juan Merchan indicated in today’s ruling that he is inclined to give Trump an “unconditional discharge,” meaning that the president-elect would face no penalties of any kind despite the guilty verdict from a jury trial. Experts observing the case had expressed doubt after the verdict that the former president – whose crime is nonviolent and has no prior criminal record – would face any jail time, even though the charges carried a maximum sentence of four years. Trump’s team has criticized Merchan’s decision for not overturning the charges altogether, as they have asked at every turn when sentencing was scheduled. His spokesperson, Steven Cheung, stated that the decision goes against “the Supreme Court’s Immunity decision and other longstanding jurisprudence,” and that Trump “must be allowed to continue the Presidential Transition process and to execute the vital duties of the presidency, unobstructed by the remains of this or any remnants of the Witch Hunts.”
Merchan’s ruling also indicated that the president-elect could appear in the judge’s Manhattan courtroom in person or virtually.
Trump will be inaugurated as the 47th US President on January 20th.
