A New York judge will not delay this Friday\u2019s sentencing of President-elect Donald Trump in his felony hush money case.<\/p>\n
Justice Juan Merchan said the sentencing would proceed as Trump\u2019s arguments against it \u201care for the most part, a repetition of the arguments he has raised numerous times in the past\u201d.<\/p>\n
In court filings, Trump\u2019s attorneys had argued that they sought \u201ca dismissal of this politically motivated prosecution that was flawed from the very beginning\u201d. His legal team is seeking a hearing on the matter with the appellate court.<\/p>\n
Trump was found guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in May, making him the first former president convicted of a crime.<\/p>\n
\u201cDefendant\u2019s motion for a stay of these proceedings, including the sentencing hearing scheduled for January 10, 2025, is hereby DENIED,\u201d Justice Merchan wrote in his decision on Monday.<\/p>\n
The charges stemmed from Trump\u2019s attempt to disguise reimbursements for a $130,000 hush money payment to an adult film star as legal expenses.<\/p>\n
Trump pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing. His lawyers said that filing an appeal should halt the criminal proceedings in his New York case.<\/p>\n
The sentencing had been delayed repeatedly by the 2024 presidential election and Trump\u2019s attempt to have the case thrown out based on a claim of presidential immunity. Justice Merchan ultimately rejected the immunity argument in December.<\/p>\n
On 3 January, Justice Merchan issued an order saying he would move ahead with the sentencing before Trump takes office on 20 January, but made clear he would not consider any custodial term.<\/p>\n
He indicated he would instead issue a sentence of an \u201cunconditional discharge\u201d, which means no prison, fine or probation.<\/p>\n
Justice Merchan ordered Trump to appear virtually or in-person for the hearing.<\/p>\n
Steven Cheung, spokesman for Trump\u2019s presidential transition, reiterated his argument that the prosecution was unlawful.<\/p>\n
He said in a statement: \u201cThe American People elected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate that demands an immediate end to the political weaponisation of our justice system and all of the remaining Witch Hunts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Trump\u2019s team has not publicly commented on whether the president-elect will be in court this Friday.<\/p>\n
But in its response on Monday afternoon to the request for a stay, the Manhattan district attorney\u2019s office referred to the \u201cdefendant\u2019s decision to appear for sentencing virtually instead of in person\u201d.<\/p>\n
The reference to a virtual hearing was repeated again several pages later.<\/p>\n
In the response, the district attorney asked the judge to deny Trump\u2019s request for an immediate stay of his sentencing, and argued he would not be prejudiced by such a decision.<\/p>\n
The weeks after the election featured a flurry of legal filings from both Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the case, and Trump\u2019s legal team.<\/p>\n
Bragg\u2019s office had previously indicated that they would not oppose delaying Trump\u2019s sentencing until after he finishes his term in office, four years from now.<\/p>\n
But after Justice Merchan decided to move ahead with the sentencing, Bragg asked the judge to proceed with sentencing on Friday.<\/p>\n
In his order last week, Justice Merchan wrote that \u201cit is this court\u2019s firm belief that only by bringing finality to this matter\u201d would the legal quandaries at play be resolved.<\/p>\n
However, the judge left the door open to further Trump legal challenges, writing that he \u201cmust be permitted to avail himself of every available appeal\u201d.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n
–Agencies<\/p>\n
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A New York judge will not delay this Friday’s sentencing of President-elect Donald Trump in his felony hush money case. Justice Juan Merchan said the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2510,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":2,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2670","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n