A New York appellate judge on Tuesday rejected Donald Trump’s bid to delay his sentencing in the hush money case, though Trump still has other avenues for appeal in his pursuit to avoid becoming the first president with a felony record.
Justice Ellen Gesmer of the state Appellate Division denied Trump’s emergency stay request after a brief exchange between his attorney, Todd Blanche, and Steven Wu of the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.
“There has never been a case like this,” Blanche argued, asserting Trump’s claim to presidential immunity and insisting that he “should not have to go through any legal process,” according to NBC News.
Wu dismissed the immunity argument as “baseless,” noting, “There is one president at a time,” and emphasizing that the virtual proceeding would take about an hour.
Trump’s legal team claimed that the sentencing would disrupt the presidential transition and violate Trump’s constitutional rights. However, in a succinct ruling, Gesmer wrote, “After consideration of the papers submitted and the extensive oral argument, movant’s application for an interim stay is denied.”
The ruling upholds Judge Juan Merchan’s earlier decision that Trump does not qualify for immunity until he is sworn in as president. Merchan directed the sentencing to proceed on Friday morning and indicated plans to impose an unconditional discharge, leaving Trump’s conviction intact but imposing no punishment.
However, Trump can still bring more delays as he attempts to avoid being sentenced for 34 felony counts after a jury convicted him in May 2024.
Former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani told the Washington Examiner that Trump will likely file an appeal at the New York Court of Appeals, the highest court in the state, “to issue an emergency stay.” If he fails there, Trump could then ask the U.S. Supreme Court to issue an emergency stay.
Rahmani noted that even if the Supreme Court declines to issue a stay, there is a “collateral attack” in the form of a habeas petition that Trump can file in federal district court, which will give Trump another advance to delay the sentencing.
The former prosecutor pointed to the dispute surrounding Erik and Lyle Menendez, who were convicted of killing their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. Family members of the brothers have issued a public plea for their release, alleging that they endured sexual abuse at the hands of their father and are not a threat to society.
“The Menendez brothers is probably the best example,” Rahmani said of comparisons to Trump’s never-ending appeals ladder. “Obviously they exhausted appeals, right? That was decades ago. So now what they’re doing is they’re collaterally attacking the conviction, saying the evidence of their sex abuse didn’t come in” until after their initial 1996 trial.
Trump’s case stems from his conviction of falsifying business records tied to hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016. Daniels claimed a 2006 affair with Trump, which he denies.
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Prosecutors from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office argued against further delays, stating that Trump’s current status as president-elect makes this “the least burdensome time” to proceed.
Merchan last week indicated that he would sentence Trump to an unconditional discharge, effectively a blemish on Trump’s record, saying it struck a balance between the duties of president and the sanctity of the jury’s verdict.
