(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump has been granted a week to make fresh arguments for dismissing his New York hush money case in light of the election, as the president-elect to quickly resolve an array of legal threats before he takes office.
Justice Juan Merchan on Tuesday granted an extension until Nov. 19 for Trump and prosecutors to argue what should happen next. Merchan had been scheduled to rule Tuesday on Trump’s request for a new trial.
The move is a sign that Trump’s Nov. 26 sentencing may be in doubt. The dismissal of the case, if granted, would erase the most immediate legal threat Trump faces ahead of his inauguration. The president-elect was convicted by a jury in May on 34 felony counts in one of four criminal cases he faced during his campaign.
In the next week, Trump’s lawyers and the Manhattan district attorney are likely to present opposing views about how Trump’s conviction should be squared with the outcome of the election. In a letter to the judge, Trump’s lawyers argued there are now “strong reasons” to toss the case while prosecutors said in a seperate letter that they must balance the interests of the jury that convicted Trump with the office of the US presidency.
The delay will push off for at least a week Merchan’s expected ruling on presidential immunity. Trump, 78, had argued that his trial was tainted by witness testimony and other evidence that wouldn’t have been allowed under a US Supreme Court decision on the subject from July.
Trump lawyer Emil Bove said in an email to the court that the delay until Nov. 19 was warranted because there are arguments for dismissal “in the interests of justice” and to avoid “unconstitutional impediments to President Trump’s ability to govern.”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg agreed to pause the case for one week, citing the “unprecedented circumstances.” Trump’s election will “require careful consideration to ensure that any further steps in this proceeding appropriately balance the competing interests” of the jury’s verdict and “the office of the President,” Bragg said.
The hush-money case is one of four that Trump is seeking to put behind him before his inauguration.
Last week, Special Counsel Jack Smith, who brought two federal cases against Trump, asked a judge to cancel all deadlines in an election fraud case in light of his reelection. A longstanding Justice Department policy says sitting presidents can’t be indicted or prosecuted because doing so would interfere with the duties of the executive branch.
Meanwhile in Georgia, Trump’s lawyers are preparing to seek dismissal of the state’s criminal case against him for trying to overturn the 2020 election. As president, Trump wouldn’t have the same authority over state cases. But he can still cite the vast powers of the US presidency in asking judges to toss the cases out.
In the hush money case, Trump faces as long as four years behind bars, though many legal experts predicted he’d get far less time, or even just probation. It’s unclear about whether the Nov. 26 sentencing can be delayed until after his White House term.
A Manhattan jury in May found Trump guilty of falsifying business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to former adult-film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. The verdict on 34 felony counts made Trump the first former president to be convicted of a crime.
Weeks later, the Supreme Court held that former presidents are largely immune from charges over conduct that falls within their official duties in office. While the hush money case was focused on Trump’s conduct before he was in office, his lawyers argued the immunity ruling nevertheless had an impact.
“It is now abundantly clear that Americans want an immediate end to the weaponization of our justice system, including this case, which should have never been filed, so we can, as President Trump said in his historic victory speech, unify our country and work together for the betterment of our nation,” Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement.
(Updates with new details starting on paragraph two.)
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.