Donald Trump’s sentencing for his conviction in the hush money case will likely be delayed for at least two weeks after Trump’s lawyers asked the judge to set aside his conviction in light of Monday’s stunning Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity.
In a letter to Justice Juan Merchan, attorney Todd Blanche wrote that “President Trump does not object to an adjournment of the July 11, 2024 sentencing date” in order to consider the impacts of the top court’s decision.
Blanche argued that the decision confirmed arguments they raised earlier in the case that prosecutors should have not been allowed to introduce certain pieces of evidence that they said were “official acts.”
In a letter on Tuesday, the Manhattan DA’s office said they would not oppose a delay in the sentencing. ADA Joshua Steinglass filed a response Tuesday, asking for a new deadline of July 24, to file a response.
“Although we believe defendant’s arguments to be without merit, we do not oppose his request for leave to file and his putative request to adjourn sentencing pending determination of his motion,” he wrote.
Trump was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal unsavory stories in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election.
“The Trump decision confirmed the defense position that DANY should not have been permitted to offer evidence at trial of President Trump’s official acts,” Blanche wrote in the letter, sent Monday.
Monday’s Supreme Court decision expanded presidential immunity to all “official acts,” providing Trump addition legal leeway as his lawyers fight his multiple criminal cases. The justices found that presidents are not immune for “unofficial acts.”
Experts were skeptical that the decision would allow Trump to do away with his conviction.
The underlying conspiracy to influence the results of the election took place before Trump was president, and repayments to Michael Cohen for paying off porn star Stormy Daniels were a “classic” example of unofficial acts, attorney Ron Kuby told the Daily News on Monday.