Trump's sentencing delayed to after the election in Stormy Daniels hush money conviction
Former President Donald Trump's sentencing in his criminal hush money conviction was pushed back until three weeks after the November election, the judge said Friday.
Trump will now be sentenced Nov. 26, if sentencing is still required by then, Judge Juan Merchan ruled.
Trump had asked Merchan to push his sentencing, which was scheduled for Sept. 18, until after the upcoming presidential election in November. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office chose not to take a position on Trump's request.
In granting Trump's request, Merchan argued that he was treating the Republican presidential nominee like anyone else.
"Adjournments for sentencing are routinely granted, often several times, in any number of other criminal matters pending in this courthouse, particularly when unopposed, for reasons ranging from personal circumstances to the scheduling needs of the parties involved," Merchan wrote in the Friday decision.
"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.
A spokesperson for Bragg's office emphasized that Trump has been convicted.
"The Manhattan D.A.’s Office stands ready for sentencing on the new date set by the court," the spokesperson said.
Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump, said there shouldn't be any sentencing at all, calling the case an "Election Interference Witch Hunt" that should be dismissed following the Supreme Court's July 1 presidential immunity ruling.
Trump was found guilty on May 30 of falsifying business records 34 separate times to cover up hush money payments made on his behalf to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. Prosecutors argued Trump didn't want voters hearing Daniels' allegation – which Trump denies – that the pair had sex in 2006.
Trump has vowed to appeal his conviction, which could theoretically land him in prison for many years, although legal experts say he would most likely face either no prison time or a fairly short sentence behind bars.
Trump's argument for delayed sentencing
Trump argued the sentencing should be delayed in part so he can appeal an anticipated Merchan decision on whether to toss the entire conviction based on presidential immunity, assuming Merchan rules against him and sentencing is still required. Merchan said Friday he will issue his immunity decision on Nov. 12, one week after Election Day and two weeks before the new sentencing date.
The conviction can't stand, Trump says, because the Supreme Court ruled that certain evidence of official presidential acts can't be introduced at a trial against a former president. He says some evidence in his hush money trial, including conversations and phone calls he had as president, ran afoul of that ruling.
Bragg's office has defended Trump's conviction, arguing in a court filing that the evidence Trump is challenging "constitutes only a sliver of the mountains of testimony and documentary proof that the jury considered."
Norman Eisen, a Brookings Institution senior fellow who was counsel to the 2019 House impeachment investigation of Trump, lamented on X that Merchan had "stalled Trump's sentencing (because) of politics."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's sentencing delayed in NY hush money conviction