NEW YORK — An unusual twist, a judge ruled Friday President-elect Donald Trump he issued a verdict in his hush money criminal case on January 10 – just over a week before he was scheduled to return to the White House – but indicated he would not go to prison.
Nevertheless, the development leaves Trump on track to become the first president to take office convicted of a crime.
Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchanwho presided over Trump’s trial, signaled in a written decision that he would sentence the former and future president to the so-called unconditional discharge, i.e. a conviction, but the case is closed without any prison sentence, fine or probation. Trump can appear virtually at the sentencing if he chooses.
Rejecting Trump’s push to dismiss the verdict and dismiss the case on the grounds of presidential immunity and his upcoming second term, Merchan wrote that only “bringing the case to an end” would serve the interests of justice.
He said he was trying to balance Trump’s ability to govern “unencumbered” by the case with other interests: July U.S. Supreme Court resolution resolution on presidential immunity and the public’s expectation “that all are equal and no one is above the law,” and the importance of respecting the jury’s verdict.
“This court is simply not convinced that the first factor outweighs the others at this stage of the proceedings,” Merchan wrote in the 18-page order.
Trump sharply criticized Mercan on his Truth Social platform on Friday, writing that “it will be the end of the presidency as we know it” if the judge’s ruling is upheld.
He repeated his claims that the case was an “unlawful political attack” and “nothing more than a trumped-up farce” perpetuated by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat. He did not discuss potential next legal moves in detail.
Bragg’s office declined to comment on Merchan’s decision.
Former Manhattan judge Diane Kiesel said the verdict cannot be appealed under New York state law, but Trump could still try to appeal it. In any case, he can appeal the verdict – a step that cannot be taken until he is convicted – but he will not be able to pardon himself. Trump’s case was tried in state court, but the president’s pardon only applies to federal crimes.
Trump takes office on January 20 as the first former president to be convicted of a crime and the first convicted felon elected to the office.
The Republican was found guilty in May this year 34 counts of falsifying commercial documentation.
The charges concerned an alleged plan to hide, among others, noiseless cash payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels in the final weeks of Trump’s first campaign in 2016. The payment was intended to prevent her from going public with claims that she had sex with the married Trump years earlier. He says her story is false and he didn’t do anything wrong.
The case centered on Trump’s settlement of repaying Daniels to his then-personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. Cohen on Friday called Merchan’s sentencing decision “reasonable and appropriate.”
The guilty verdict left Trump, 78, facing possible sentences ranging from a fine or probation to four years in prison. His sentence was initially scheduled for July 11 last year postponed twice at the request of the defense.
Then, after Trump’s election on November 5, Merchan again delayed the ruling so that the defense and prosecution can decide the future of the case.
Trump’s lawyers urged Merchan to fire him. They said it would be different create unconstitutional “disturbances” the modern president’s ability to lead the country.
Prosecutors acknowledged that certain accommodations should be made for his incoming presidency, but insisted that his conviction stand.
They suggested various optionssuch as freezing the case for the duration of his term or guaranteeing he will not face any prison time. They also proposed closing the case by formally noting both the conviction and his indecisive appeal – a novel idea derived from what some state courts do when criminal defendants die while appealing.
Merchan ruled that Trump’s current status as president-elect does not afford him the same immunity as a sitting president. Overturning the verdict and dismissing the case would be a “drastic” step and “would immeasurably undermine the rule of law,” Merchan wrote.
Before Trump’s November election, his lawyers he tried to turn away convicting him on a different basis: the Supreme Court’s immunity decision, which gave presidents broad protection from criminal prosecution.
Trump was a private citizen – he was campaigning for president but not elected or sworn in – when Cohen paid Daniels in October 2016. He was president when Cohen received the refund, and Cohen testified that they discussed repayment arrangements in the Oval Office.
Trump’s hush money attorneys argued that the jury obtained evidence that should have been protected by presidential immunity. Merchant later rejected this argument, but in the meantime the elections have raised modern issues.
While urging Merchan to overturn the conviction, Trump also sought to have the case moved to federal court, where he could also seek immunity. Federal judge I said no many timesbut Trump he appealed.
The hush money case was the only one of Trump’s four indictments to go to trial.
Since the election, he has served as a special advisor to Jack Smith concluded his two federal cases. One concerned Trump’s efforts to reverse his 2020 election loss; the other claimed he was collecting secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
A separate, state level case of election interference in Georgia is suspended after the appeal hearing prosecutor Fani Willis removed from the case.
Trump’s lawyers argued that Smith’s decision to dismiss the federal indictments against Trump should also result in the dismissal of the New York hush money case. Merchan, however, said he found that argument unpersuasive, noting that the hush money case was at a “definitely” different stage.
