Donald Trump won’t be sentenced for falsifying business records until after the 2024 presidential election. On Friday (September 6), Judge Juan Merchan postponed sentencing in the Trump hush money case.
“Sentence will be deferred to avoid any suggestion – however unfounded – that the proceedings have been compromised or attempted to influence the upcoming presidential election of which the defendant is a candidate,” the judge ruled. “The court is a fair, impartial and unbiased forum. A political institution. Delaying decisions on motions and sentencing…should dispel any suggestion that the Court will issue any decision or sentence to the advantage or disadvantage of any political party and/or candidate for any office.
He added: “This is not a decision that this court takes lightly, but one that this court believes is in the best interest of justice.”
Trump’s sentencing was postponed to November 26, three weeks after the election. It was previously scheduled to be held on September 18.
In May, the former president was found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records. The charges stem from hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Trump’s lawyers filed a motion to overturn his conviction based on presidential immunity. Judge Merchan deferred a decision on the motion until November 12.
Another judge rejected Trump’s attempt to move the hush-money case from New York state court to federal court. Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein said this “is a [the federal] The court evaluates issues of bias, unfairness or error in state trials.
