New York Judge Juan Merchan on Friday delayed Donald Trump’s sentencing in the Stormy Daniels case until several weeks after the November election, the latest dramatic turn of events for the former president.
The decision will determine the sentence on November 26, when Americans will have voted and the election results should be known. It was scheduled for September 18, which would have fallen exactly two months before Election Day.
Trump’s team had asked for a delay, while prosecutors had left the case to the judge’s discretion. Merchan saw this as a sign that prosecutors supported the measure.
The judge, who repeatedly attacked Trump during his trial and again on Friday, had told the parties he would make his decision on the timing on Friday. Trump faces a maximum of four years in prison, though experts predict the first-time offender may not receive any time in prison when he is ultimately convicted.
In a letter explaining his order, Judge Merchan explained his reason for postponing the case. He wanted to avoid “any appearance, however unwarranted, that the proceedings have been or are intended to be influenced by the upcoming presidential election in which the defendant is a candidate.”
Judge Juan Merchan ruled in Trump’s favor and postponed sentencing, hours after the former president called a “witch hunt” against him
He said the adjournment should “remove any suggestion that the Court has made a decision … that would favour or disadvantage any political party or candidate”.
That came after the judge noted that it was the defense that had filed numerous motions to obstruct the case, and that the Supreme Court had made its “historic and interim decision” on presidential immunity just 10 days before an earlier ruling date.
Those moves combined to delay the decision until the height of the political season, when Trump was locked in a neck-and-neck race with Vice President Kamala Harris while campaigning against legal action being taken against him.
Merchan noted the time and effort the jury had put into the case and the complexity of a criminal trial, which should be “entirely focused” on the verdict and weighing aggravating factors “without distraction or distortion.”
Trump’s lawyers have sought to have the case moved out of Merchan’s Manhattan courtroom and into federal court. They have said Merchan should not convict Trump while that case is still pending, and have argued that the fall sentence amounts to “election interference.”
Merchan gave a hint as to how he understood these arguments in his brief. He pointed to Defendant’s “litany of perceived and unfounded grievances in prior filings that do not merit this Court’s attention.”
The decision in Trump’s favor came just hours after Trump again attacked the judge, accusing him of having a conflict of interest in the case.
“That case is a disgrace — should never have been allowed to proceed. I did nothing wrong,” Trump said in a lengthy press statement from Trump Tower, in which he also attacked New York District Judge Arthur Engoron and female prosecutors who testified in the E. Jean Carroll case.
Trump again accused the Justice Department of steering the case, which was decided by a jury in Manhattan. “It’s very corrupt in New York. It’s a very corrupt place.”
Trump declared victory in his speech Friday afternoon in North Carolina. “The witch hunt against me has been postponed because everyone realizes there was no case because I did nothing wrong,” he said. “It’s a witch hunt. It’s an attack by my political opponents in Washington, D.C.”
Merchan’s decision ensures that the penalties will not be imposed until after Americans go to the polls but before the electors convene in their statehouses on Dec. 17 — a period in 2020 when Trump was challenging the election results.
The office of District Attorney Alvin Bragg had said the judge should make a decision, but said in a filing that Trump’s complaints about the timing of the case “are a result of his own strategic and delaying litigation tactics.’
Judge Juan Merchan says he will decide whether to postpone the sentencing scheduled for Sept. 18 in his Stormy Daniels case, citing a desire to “avoid any appearance, however unjustified, that the case would proceed in a way that would affect the presidential election.”
Trump has spoken out strongly online and in Trump Tower against the Stormy Daniels case, accusing Vice President Kamala Harris and the U.S. Justice Department of being behind it
The sentencing discussions follow Trump’s conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with the “secret” $130,000 payments to Stormy Daniels
In a separate case, Trump and E. Jean Carroll both attended an appeals court hearing in Trump’s attempt to appeal a $5 million jury verdict
The high-stakes decision comes as Trump, who issued a combative press release on Friday, appeared in court in another case in which his remaining attorneys are appealing a $5 million judgment against him in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case.
Merchan had already postponed sentencing from an original July 11 date amid the legal battle over whether Trump enjoys immunity from prosecution for official acts. Some of the evidence in the Stormy Daniels case shows Trump signing checks for the final installment of the porn star’s hush-money payments from the Oval Office.
Trump’s decision to appear in Carroll’s appeal comes a day after he decided not to appear at a January 6 court hearing in Washington, DC on the status of his case.
In that case, he had his attorney John Lauro enter his “not guilty” plea in connection with his attempt to overturn the election.
Trump cheered the decision on his Truth Social site, claiming the prosecutor had “no case” even though he had been convicted.
“The Manhattan DA Witch Hunt has been postponed because everyone realizes there was NO CASE, I DID NOTHING WRONG! It is a political attack on me by Comrade Kamala Harris and other radical left wing opponents for the purpose of election interference and it is a case that should never have been brought,” Trump wrote.
“Nothing like this has ever happened in the United States of America – IT’S STRICTLY THIRD WORLD, BANANA REPUBLIC ‘STUFF,’” he wrote, listing legal academics, lawyers and TV personalities who support him.
‘I greatly appreciate the use of the words “if necessary” in the decision, because there should be no “if necessary” – This case should rightly be closed as we prepare for the most important election in our country’s history. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!’
In the Stormy Daniels hush-money case, Trump’s team has twice tried to delay the verdict.
In May, he was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records related to payments to the porn star.
Trump has repeatedly criticized the case, and on Thursday night accused his election rival Kamala Harris of fabricating it. (Trump previously accused President Joe Biden of being behind his prosecution.)
‘Here is what several legal scholars and experts, brilliant lawyers, and highly respected journalists think about the Manhattan DA Hoax, where the Democrats, led by Comrade Kamala Harris, are working directly with the DOJ (which they really shouldn’t be!) to put a former President of the United States and the leading candidate for President in JAIL. This is unheard of, nothing like this has ever happened in our country and they are doing it in a blatant and illegal attempt to “win” an election that, based on their results, should be “unwinnable” but I can’t talk about it because Judge Merchan has an unconstitutional gag order on me. Somehow it will ALL work out – I don’t know how, I don’t know why, I don’t know when, but it always works out!’
While Merchan Trump could face a sentence of up to four years, legal experts say a sentence of probation or community service is more likely.
