Donald Trump is not granted presidential immunity in the New York hush money case.
Judge Juan Marchan sent a letter Monday saying his conviction for payments to porn star Stormy Daniels should not be thrown out.
This comes as President Trump is seeking to throw out the lawsuit following the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision this summer.
But a judge ruled earlier this year that the evidence presented in the lawsuit related to “entirely unofficial conduct” and therefore not official conduct as president.
“This court concludes that even if there was an error in introducing the challenged evidence, such error is harmless in light of the overwhelming incriminating evidence,” Marchand wrote. .
“Even if this court finds that the evidence at issue constitutes an official act under the auspices of the Trump decision, even though the fact is that it does not, the introduction of the evidence at issue was a harmless error and no Defendants’ motion remains denied because no procedural error occurred.” ”
Prosecutors last week asked a New York judge to waive Trump’s prison sentence for hush money in a new filing. This is an effort to prevent the case from being completely discarded.
Machan did not rule on the motion Monday.
Instead, his 41-page decision focused on the issue of presidential immunity.
A jury found Trump guilty in May of 34 counts of falsifying business records to hide a $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
In documents released last week, prosecutors lay out various alternatives to jailing the president in order to uphold his conviction.
They even suggest using a procedure that is more commonly invoked when the defendant dies.
A jury found in May that President Trump falsified business records to hide $130,000 he paid Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election to keep quiet about his affair with her several years earlier. He was found guilty of the crime.
Trump’s lawyers argue that the lawsuit should be thrown out now so it doesn’t interfere with Trump’s ability to govern after he takes the oath of office on January 20, 2025.
They also felt the case should be thrown out, citing the Supreme Court’s July ruling that says presidents of the United States are immune from prosecution for official actions taken while in office.
The case focuses on special counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of Trump for allegedly masterminding efforts to overturn the 2020 election while in office, including the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. .
The former and incoming president’s team must have absolute immunity from prosecution for actions taken by Trump and any president while in office, which could otherwise jeopardize important decision-making. he claimed.
“The president is not immune from unofficial acts, and not all his actions are official. The president is not above the law,” the justices, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, ruled. I wrote it in a group.
The Supreme Court ruled in July that the president of the United States is immune from prosecution for official actions while in office.
But Judge Marchen (pictured) wrote in Monday’s ruling that Trump’s actions introduced as evidence in the hush money trial were not official acts as president.
In response to President Trump’s recent request for removal from office, prosecutors said their concerns revolved around the possibility of him being sent to prison.
“However, in this case, because the defendant has no prior criminal record and was previously convicted of a class E felony, this court does not need to impose a sentence of incarceration at all, and could instead impose an unconditional release.”
“Thus, the court may conclude that while presidential immunity does not require removal from office, a non-prison sentence is necessary in these circumstances.”
Another idea would be to close the case but add an asterisk, effectively explaining that Trump was convicted but not sentenced and presidential immunity leaves the appeal pending. That’s probably true.
“This remedy will avoid the burden of ongoing criminal proceedings while the defendant was president,” prosecutors said, and does not ignore “the fact that the defendant was indicted and convicted.” There wasn’t.
President Trump wants the case completely thrown out.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg presented Judge Juan Marchan with a range of options to avoid reversing Donald Trump’s criminal conviction, including reversing his prison sentence recommendation.
“This lawless lawsuit should never have been filed, and the Constitution requires it to be dismissed immediately,” said his spokesman Stephen Chan.
Sentencing was originally scheduled for November.
But Judge Juan Melchán halted the proceedings to allow defense and prosecution lawyers to submit their opinions on how to proceed, given Trump’s victory in the Nov. 5 presidential election.
Machan has not yet set a date for his next step.
Meanwhile, Trump watched many of his legal problems evaporate.
Special Counsel Jack Smith has dropped two federal lawsuits related to government documents recovered from President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home after the election and the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Trump has denied wrongdoing in all cases against him.
