() A New York judge on Friday once again delayed the sentencing in President-elect Donald Trump’s porn star case as Trump seeks dismissal of the felony convictions.
Judge Juan Merchan granted Trump’s defense request to file a motion for dismissal. He also set deadlines for future motions and stayed his decision on dismissal. Merchan also hit pause on sentencing, which was set for Nov. 26.
“In a decisive win for President Trump, the hoax Manhattan Case is now fully stayed and sentencing is adjourned,” Trump Communications Director Steven Cheung said in a statement.
“President Trump won a landslide victory as the American People have issued a mandate to return him to office and dispose of all remnants of the Witch Hunt cases,” he added. “All of the sham lawfare attacks against President Trump are now destroyed and we are focused on Making America Great Again.”
In late May, Trump was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records for listing payments to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels and Playboy bunny Karen McDougal as legal costs ahead of the 2016 election.
Under New York state law, falsifying business records in the first degree is a Class E felony with a maximum sentence of four years in prison.
Trump’s defense team must file a motion for dismissal by Dec. 2. Prosecutors from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office plan to oppose that motion. That opposition motion is due by Dec. 9.
Earlier this week, Bragg suggested sentencing could wait until 2029 when Trump finishes his final term in the White House and no longer enjoys the protections of the nation’s highest office.
Trump and his allies slammed the outrageous effort to delay justice, with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, calling it an “unprecedented … abuse of power.”
Spending the Day with Trump, Elon & Rocket Ships, plus Alvin Bragg Continues his Lawlessness. @benfergusonshow and I take you behind the scenes on Verdict. https://t.co/xELPA0VyZH
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) November 20, 2024
Merchan previously said that if Trump’s dismissal motion fails, “the law requires the imposition of sentence following a guilty verdict without unreasonable delay.”
Trump wants the case dismissed. His defense attorneys have asked the judge to dismiss the case based on the U.S. Supreme Court’s immunity decision.
In July, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that presidents and former presidents have absolute immunity for actions related to core constitutional powers and presumptive immunity for official actions. The ruling said the president has no immunity for unofficial conduct.
Prosecutors said they are trying to balance Trump’s next term in the White House with the jury’s verdict in the case.
“The People agree that these are unprecedented circumstances and that the arguments raised by defense counsel in correspondence … require careful consideration to ensure that any further steps in this proceeding appropriately balance (1) a jury verdict of guilt following trial that has presumption of regularity and (2) the Office of the President,” prosecutor Michael Colangelo wrote.
