Topline
Former President Donald Trump wants to postpone the upcoming sentencing date in his Manhattan criminal case until after the election, his attorneys said in a letter Thursday reported by multiple outlets, arguing the sentencing would interfere with the election and not give Trump enough time to appeal an upcoming decision on whether the verdict against him should be tossed out.
Former President Donald Trump departs the courtroom after being found guilty on all 34 counts in his … [+]
Key Facts
Trump’s attorneys asked New York Judge Juan Merchan to delay sentencing until an unspecified point after the election, according to copies of the letter reported by CNN, ABC News and Politico, after the ex-president was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
Merchan is currently set to sentence Trump on September 18, which Trump’s attorneys claimed would play into prosecutors’ purported “naked election-interference objectives” by sentencing Trump while the election is underway.
Delaying the sentencing until after the election “would reduce, even if not eliminate, issues regarding the integrity of any future proceedings,” Trump’s attorneys argued, after they’ve previously claimed— unsuccessfully—that Merchan is biased because his daughter works for a firm connected to Vice President Kamala Harris.
Merchan is also set to rule September 16 on Trump’s motion to throw out the verdict after the Supreme Court gave him some immunity for criminal charges for “official acts” in office, as Trump claims some evidence used against him at trial should not have been allowed under the court’s ruling.
Since that ruling will come out only two days before Trump’s sentencing, the ex-president’s attorneys claim it doesn’t give them enough time to weigh their options for appealing if Merchan rules against Trump, arguing sentencing should only take place after the immunity issue is “addressed fully and finally,” and claiming, “A single business day is an unreasonably short period of time for President Trump to seek to vindicate these rights.”
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Crucial Quote
“Setting aside naked election-interference objectives, there is no valid countervailing reason for the Court to keep the current sentencing date on the calendar,” Trump’s attorneys wrote. “There is no basis for continuing to rush.”
What To Watch For
It’s unclear when Merchan could rule on Trump’s request or if he’ll agree to postpone the sentencing. The judge has already delayed Trump’s sentencing once before, after Trump submitted the motion to have the verdict thrown out. The sentencing was initially supposed to take place in July. Merchan rejected Trump’s claims that the judge is biased against him in a ruling Wednesday in which Merchan refused to recuse himself from the case, calling Trump’s arguments “unsubstantiated” and writing, “Innuendo and mischaracterizations do not a conflict create.”
What We Don’t Know
What punishment Trump will face when he is sentenced, whenever that may be. Each of the 34 counts Trump was convicted on carries a maximum punishment of up to four years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine. Legal experts broadly believe it’s unlikely—though still technically possible—Trump could be sentenced to prison as a first-time offender, though it remains to be seen what ultimate sentence Merchan could impose.
Surprising Fact
Trump winning the election won’t get him out of his Manhattan conviction. While the ex-president could appoint Justice Department officials that would drop any charges against him in his pending cases in federal court, or attempt to pardon himself for any convictions in federal court, the Manhattan charges were brought in state court, which he doesn’t have any control over. That means Trump would not hold any sway over the case if he’s elected, though he could ask the court to postpone any punishment he’s sentenced to until after he leaves office.
Key Background
Trump was convicted for falsifying business records in May after a weekslong trial, the first of his four criminal cases to move forward to trial. Manhattan prosecutors indicted Trump based on hush money payments his ex-attorney Michael Cohen made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election in order to cover up her allegations of having an affair with Trump, which he denies. Trump then reimbursed Cohen through a series of payments made throughout 2017, which prosecutors argued were falsely labeled as being for legal services. Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and has largely decried the case and other criminal cases against him as “witch hunts” designed to harm his presidential campaign. He has also lashed out against Merchan throughout the proceedings, claiming the judge is unfairly biased against him. Trump’s request to postpone the sentencing comes after the ex-president and his attorneys have broadly sought to delay his criminal cases until after the election. Those efforts have ended up being largely successful in his other cases, as the Supreme Court’s immunity dispute postponed his federal case for trying to overturn the 2020 election, his other federal case was dismissed—though prosecutors are appealing—and his criminal charges in Georgia are on hold until at least December amid a dispute over whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified.
