The U.S. Supreme Court turned down Donald Trump’s request on Thursday to delay his sentencing in a New York state court, related to charges stemming from a hush money payment that led to his conviction. The court, in a 5-4 ruling, rejected Trump’s urgent plea to stop the scheduled sentencing, set for Friday at 9:30 a.m. in Manhattan’s state court. Chief Justice John Roberts, alongside conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, sided with the three liberal justices – Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson – forming the majority against Trump’s appeal.
In its brief ruling, the court provided two key reasons for the decision. “First, the alleged evidentiary violations at president-elect Trump’s state-court trial can be addressed in the ordinary course on appeal. Second, the burden that sentencing will impose on the president-elect’s responsibilities is relatively insubstantial in light of the trial court’s stated intent to impose a sentence of ‘unconditional discharge’ after a brief virtual hearing.”
Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing Trump’s case, indicated last week that he was unlikely to sentence the president-elect to prison and suggested he would likely opt for an unconditional discharge. While this would result in a guilty verdict on Trump’s record, it would not involve imprisonment, a fine, or probation.
A dissenting opinion came from four conservative justices – Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh – who expressed they would have granted Trump’s request. Trump sought the justices’ intervention as part of his state court appeal, which raises concerns regarding presidential immunity in light of a Supreme Court ruling last July that granted former presidents extensive immunity from criminal prosecution for their official duties.
The Supreme Court issued its decision following the rejection of Trump’s request by New York’s highest court earlier that day. In the morning, Manhattan prosecutors filed an objection with the Supreme Court, opposing Trump’s request to block his sentencing.
{Matzav.com}