New York prosecutors have vowed to oppose President-elect Donald Trump’s bid to overturn his criminal convictions, but are willing to wait to convict him until after his next presidential term.
Prosecutors urged the judge overseeing Trump’s sentencing following his guilty verdict to consider options other than impeachment, including a stay until the president-elect leaves the White House in 2029.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office asked Judge Joan Murchin to set a new deadline of Dec. 9 for both sides to consider the case and file new motions.
Trump’s sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 26 but could be delayed further.
In May, Trump was convicted. 34 counts of falsifying business records stemming from an attempt to cover up a potential sex scandal before his first presidential run in 2016.
However, a few weeks later, the U.S. Supreme Court held in a separate case that presidents have limited immunity from criminal prosecution for “official acts.”
Trump’s lawyers Want a New York judge to overturn his conviction. Based on presidential immunity, and because of his upcoming term in the White House.
But prosecutors argued Tuesday that the issues at the heart of their case had nothing to do with official presidential duties.
He emphasized that the trial and sentencing came before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled this summer that presidents enjoy broad immunity from criminal prosecution.
However, he acknowledged Justice Murchan’s “need to balance competing constitutional interests”.
He asked the judge to consider “non-dismissal options” that could include “postponing all remaining criminal proceedings until the end of the defendant’s next presidential term.”
“The DA is asking the court to sentence him until Trump leaves the White House,” said Mitchell Eppner, a New York attorney and former prosecutor.
Mr. Eppner said that with Trump’s inauguration just weeks away, there is little time left on the calendar for a new round of motions and briefings. He said the case would be put on hold anyway after Jan. 20, when Trump takes the oath of office.
Of the four criminal prosecutions against Trump, the New York case was the only one to go to trial and reach a guilty verdict.
But the final outcome is now uncertain as Trump prepares to move to the White House next January.
Nonetheless, Trump spokesman Steven Cheung — tapped to serve as White House communications director — declared a “complete and definitive victory.”
However, Justice Murchan is yet to pronounce judgment on the matter.
Diana Florence, a former Manhattan prosecutor, said the plea raised doubts that Trump would face a conviction at a hearing scheduled for Nov. 26, as the judge would likely accept the prosecution’s proposal.
“I think there’s less than half a percent chance he’ll be sentenced next week,” he said.
The judge has a range of options for sentencing Trump, from fines and probation to up to four years in prison — though legal experts say the president-elect could avoid any legal punishment.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg first accused Trump of falsifying business records in April 2023, accusing the president-elect of a hush money scheme in the closing days of the 2016 presidential campaign.
Prosecutors said Trump tried to hide the payment to his personal lawyer, who had paid an adult film star with whom Trump allegedly had an affair. Due to the close proximity of the scheme to elections, they claimed it amounted to election interference.
Trump has maintained his innocence, denied the affair ever happened and alleged the case was a form of political persecution.
But in May a jury of 12 New Yorkers Found the president-elect guilty.
Trump’s sentencing hearing has been delayed several times. The court agreed to stay any decision until today while all parties address the historic implications of his re-election.
Madeleine Halpert contributed to this report.
