NEW YORK – A judge on Monday denied a motion by Donald Trump’s lawyers to throw out the president-elect’s 34-count felony conviction based on a broad U.S. Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity.
New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan ruled that Trump’s conviction in May for falsifying business records connected to a hush money payment should not be overturned because of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling issued July 1. The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling broadly defined official conduct by a president that is protected under the immunity doctrine.
Merchan’s decision said Trump’s request was denied in part because his lawyers did not raise objections to certain elements of the case related to presidential immunity during his trial. Trump’s lawyers failed to “preserve” their rights to make certain immunity-related claims after the trial, the judge wrote.
The judge also said the conduct by Trump at issue in the case was personal and not related to his official duties.
“This Court concludes that if error occurred regarding the introduction of the challenged evidence, which it does not, and such error were excised, such error was harmless in light of the overwhelming evidence of guilt,” Merchan wrote.
Trump can appeal Merchan’s decision or ask a federal court to block a sentencing if one is scheduled. If another court decision does not change the circumstances, Trump could be sworn in for his second term next month as the only U.S. president convicted of a felony.
Merchan separately must decide whether to sentence Trump before he takes office, after his term or not at all.
Trump’s sentencing in state court in Manhattan had been scheduled Nov. 26, but was postponed indefinitely because of other pending motions related to his upcoming second term in office. He faces up to four years in prison, though some legal analysts have said prison time seemed unlikely for reasons including his lack of a prior criminal record.
During his campaign, Trump was indicted four times, twice in federal courts and twice in state courts. His only criminal trial was in Manhattan where a jury found him guilty of falsifying business records to conceal a hush money payment to an adult-film actress.
(c) 2024, The Washington Post · Shayna Jacobs