Former President Trump is trying to push back the sentencing in his criminal hush money case until after the 2024 presidential election, arguing that the current Sept. 18 sentencing date furthers what his lawyers call prosecutors’ “bare election meddling goal.”
Judge Juan Merchan has already delayed sentencing once, at Trump’s request, after the US Supreme Court recent decision on presidential immunity.
Trump was originally scheduled to be sentenced on July 11. Judge Merchan ruled last month that he would rule on Trump’s immunity claim on September 16 and impose sentence two days later.
“This timing illustrates the absurdity of having the potential for just a single day between a decision on the president’s immunity issue and an unprecedented and unwarranted sentence,” defense attorneys wrote in a letter to the judge Thursday.
Trump’s lawyers questioned whether the sentencing would take place after the start of early voting, arguing that the timing harms the integrity of the proceedings.
“Finally, with respect to the bare election interference cases, there are no valid countervailing reasons for the court to keep the current sentencing date on the calendar. There is no basis for continuing to rush,” defense attorneys wrote.
Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event in Philadelphia on June 22, 2024.
Tom Brenner/Reuters
Trump’s request for a delay comes a day after Merchan sharply criticized defense lawyers for raising “inaccurate and unsubstantiated allegations” in his motion to have Merchan dismissed from the case based on an alleged conflict of interest involving his daughter and Vice President Kamala Harris. Merchan denied the motion.
Although Merchan denied their motion to dismiss, Trump’s lawyers again raised their “conflicts and appearance of impropriety” arguments in their letter urging a delayed ruling.
Trump was was sentenced in May on all 34 counts of falsifying business records linked to a hush-hush payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to boost his chances in the 2016 presidential election.