An indefinite cancellation of sentencing has been issued for the New York hush-money case against President-elect Donald Trump. The reason, coming hot on the heels of Trump’s victory in the November 5 presidential election, further complicates an already contentious legal battle.
The roots of the legal drama date back to May 30, when Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Those stem from an effort to cover up a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the heated 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels has maintained she and Trump had a sexual encounter in 2006; he has consistently denied it.
On Friday, Judge Juan Merchan of the New York State Supreme Court ruled on the Trump team’s motion that he be allowed to seek to dismiss the case entirely. The Trump lawyers say these ongoing legal proceedings could create “unconstitutional impediments” with regard to him running the country effectively.
This allows Donald Trump‘s lawyers to file a formal motion to dismiss the indictment until December 2nd, and the Manhattan DA, Alvin Bragg, until December 9th. The move postpones sentencing and opens a window for Trump to tout his conviction be thrown out before being sworn into office on January 20, 2025.
In response, Trump’s spokesman Steven Cheung hailed the ruling as a “resounding victory.” He said, “All of the sham lawfare attacks against President Trump are now destroyed and we are focused on Making America Great Again.” That echoes a refrain long repeated by the Trump team: that these legal challenges are part of a broader politically motivated attempt to destroy his presidency.
It adds to the strings of legal victories for Trump this month. The Justice Department is still weighing how it will handle Trump’s two federal criminal cases, including one related to allegedly misusing his influence to interfere in the 2020 election and taking classified government documents.
According to one Department of Justice policy, a sitting president cannot be criminally prosecuted. So the big questions are: What does the former president’s election victory mean to these two ongoing cases?.
The Trump campaign has framed the lawsuits as politically motivated attempts to smear his presidency. “The American People have rendered their verdict to send him back to the White House and cast aside all remnants of the Witch Hunt cases,” said campaign spokesman Steven Cheung. Many supporters of Mr. Trump share that sentiment, viewing the lawsuits as part of a broader arc of political persecution.
Meanwhile, Trump’s lawyers prepare to file their motion to dismiss, with the argument that continuing the case will disrupt the “orderly transition” of power. They even assert that, on constitutional grounds, Trump’s conviction should be dismissed due to the existence of the Presidential Transition Act and an agreement on presidential immunity by the Supreme Court.
Trump has asked that the case be thrown out by citing his election victory and the established legal precedents regarding presidential immunity. The future of sentencing for Trump is on hold as the upcoming weeks, by indication from the judge, promise to be filled with events that will seal the fate of this case whether it will at all affect the livelihood of Trump’s presidency.
As Trump weaves through this complex legal landscape, he is as divisive as ever, a man whose bases might be considered for the most part to be lifted from a Hollywood script. A junction of politics and law was rarely so outspoken, and as the nation watches, the effects of such development will no doubt resound far beyond the courtroom.
Thus, this is a momentous moment in history; it is the first time this has happened where a former president is trying to see how this legal drama will unfold. Will Trump emerge victorious, or will his legal challenges rewrite the narrative of his presidency? Only time will tell.
