The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s hush money trial has rescheduled a key ruling on presidential immunity to just two days before Trump’s sentencing. The immunity decision, initially set for 6 September, will now be addressed on 16 September, following a request from Trump’s legal team for the judge to step aside from the case.
Judge Juan M. Merchan announced the postponement in a letter released on Tuesday and noted that Trump is still scheduled to appear in court on 18 September for sentencing or other proceedings.
Neither Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, nor the Manhattan district attorney’s office, which is prosecuting the case, provided comments.
In May, a jury found Trump guilty of falsifying business records to hide a payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. Daniels had been considering revealing details of a past sexual encounter with Trump. Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer, paid Daniels and was later reimbursed by Trump, who recorded the repayment as legal expenses. Prosecutors argued this was an attempt to obscure the true nature of the transactions and the hush money deal.
Trump denies Daniels’ allegations, insists he did nothing wrong, and claims the case is politically driven. Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg is a Democrat.
Trump’s lawyers argue that a Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity from July necessitates overturning the May guilty verdict and dismissing the case. They contend the trial was compromised by inadmissible evidence, including testimony from Trump White House staffers and his 2018 tweets.
The Supreme Court’s decision limits prosecutions of ex-presidents for official acts and prevents prosecutors from using official acts as evidence of illegal unofficial actions.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office argues that the Supreme Court‘s ruling does not affect the hush money case since it involves unofficial acts for which Trump is not immune.
Trump’s legal team has also asked Judge Merchan to recuse himself for the third time, citing his daughter’s involvement in Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2020 presidential campaign. Harris is the current Democratic nominee for president.
Merchan previously dismissed two recusal requests, calling the defence’s concerns “hypothetical” and based on “innuendos” and “unsupported speculation.” However, Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche claims that Harris’ presidential candidacy makes these issues more significant and argues that the judge has not sufficiently addressed them.
The hush money case is one of four criminal prosecutions against Trump last year. A federal case accusing Trump of illegally retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate was dismissed last month, with the Justice Department appealing. The other cases, concerning Trump’s attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss, are not expected to go to trial before the November election.
