The U.S. Supreme Court directed New York prosecutors to respond to Donald Trump's sentencing delay request in his 34-count fraud conviction by Thursday morning, a critical development in the hush money case ahead of his inauguration.
Supreme Court Reviews Trump's Sentencing Delay Request
In the "hush money" case, a 34-count felony conviction for commercial fraud in New York, the U.S. Supreme Court promptly granted President-elect Trump's official plea to postpone sentencing early Wednesday morning.
New York Supreme Court is set to sentence Trump on Friday for what District Attorney Alvin Bragg called Trump's fabrication of New York company records to cover up his illicit plot to rig the 2016 election.
Trump's Previous Success in Delaying Sentencing
Trump was able to get his sentencing dates postponed twice; the first time was on July 11. Just days before bringing their case to the United States Supreme Court, his lawyers unsuccessfully sought to postpone punishment in two New York courts.
According to CNN, Trump's legal team argued before the nation's top court that the president's current effort is an exceptionally unusual request that uses the court's decision last year to grant him broad immunity from criminal prosecution. They claimed that the president's office and the federal government were in danger from impending grave injustice, so they asked for a pause in the case.
Legal Debate Over Presidential Immunity
An aspect of Trump's case hinges on the decision of the United States Supreme Court, which, among other things, exempted him and any presidents who followed him from prosecution for what it defined as "official actions" of the presidency. Legal specialists are divided about whether or whether Trump's conviction for manipulating company records applies to his official role as president when he pays "hush money" to an adult film star.
Supreme Court Orders Response from District Attorney
According to Lawfare senior editor Roger Parloff, the Supreme Court reacted to Trump's request on Wednesday morning by ordering New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg to reply to Trump's move by 10 AM ET Thursday.
The Supreme Court's decision was covered by Katie Buehler of Law360 as well, The Raw Story points out.
Potential Implications of Delaying the Sentencing
"If Trump's lawyers are successful in halting the proceedings before he is sworn in, in fewer than two weeks, the hush money case could linger for months while his attorneys pursue an appeal to toss out the conviction," CNN further states.
Peter Charalambous of ABC News claims that Trump's attorneys have requested an extraordinary intervention from the nation's highest court in the ongoing criminal case of a former president-whose appointment of three justices solidified the court's conservative majority-that would essentially annul his criminal conviction less than two weeks prior to his inauguration.
Business Times has reached out to Donald Trump for comments.
