Decision on Trump sentencing date in “hush money” case coming Friday, prosecutors say

A New York judge is expected to say Friday when former President Donald Trump will be sentenced for falsifying business records to cover up a “hush money” payment to an adult film star.

Trump has twice sought to delay sentencing after his conviction in May by a unanimous jury on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. 

He was originally scheduled to be sentenced on July 11, but Justice Juan Merchan pushed back that date to Sept. 18 after Trump motioned for the judge to set aside his conviction. Trump cited a Supreme Court ruling that former presidents have immunity for “official acts,” and evidence related to presidential work cannot be included in criminal trials. 

Merchan has said he’ll rule on Trump’s request to set aside the jury’s verdict just two days before the currently scheduled sentencing, on Sept. 16. 

In August, Trump asked that the sentencing date be pushed back further — until after the presidential election. Trump’s lawyers said another postponement would give his team time to appeal if Merchan rejects their request to set aside the conviction.

While waiting for Merchan’s decision, Trump also pursued another path to delaying sentencing. He asked a federal judge to take over the case, claiming it belongs in federal court. The federal judge rejected that request Wednesday, and Trump appealed. 

On Thursday, a lawyer for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg informed the appeals court that Merchan will issue his decision on sentencing tomorrow.

“The judge has now informed the parties that the decision will be rendered tomorrow,” Bragg’s lawyer wrote.

Prosecutors said Trump signed off on a scheme to hide reimbursements to a lawyer who wired a $130,000 “hush money” payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 presidential election. Trump denied the encounter and pleaded not guilty.

Merchan has wide leeway in determining Trump’s sentence. The charges carry a maximum sentence of up to four years in jail, but this is Trump’s first conviction, so Merchan may also hand down a sentence that involves a variety of alternatives to incarceration, including probation.