The U.S. Supreme Court late Thursday blocked a last-ditch attempt to block President-elect Donald Trump’s criminal sentencing in New York on Friday, 10 days before his inauguration.
The nation’s highest court ruled 5-4, denying President Trump’s request to halt his sentencing. Conservative justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh dissented. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined the court’s liberals, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, in denying the request.
The majority said the issue of Trump’s sentencing was “relatively insubstantial.”
“First, the alleged evidentiary violations alleged in President-elect Trump’s state court trial can be addressed during the normal appellate process,” the court wrote in its one-page order. “Second, given the trial court’s intent to impose an ‘unconditional dismissal’ sentence after a brief virtual hearing, the burden the sentence imposes on the elect’s liability is relatively minor.”
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With this decision, President Trump will be sentenced in New York on Friday morning.
President Trump headed to the U.S. Supreme Court after Judge Juan Mercan denied his request to stay the case pending appeal.
In May 2024, a Manhattan jury found Trump guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records for allegedly disguising hush money payments to adult film stars as legal fees ahead of the 2016 election.
Under New York state law, first-degree falsification of business records is a Class E felony punishable by up to four years in prison. But Trump won’t be locked up.
Marchon wrote last week that Trump will not be imprisoned or jailed. Merchan’s ruling said “the court’s intention is not to impose any prison sentence” because voters elected Trump anyway.
President Trump has repeatedly said his political opponents orchestrated criminal proceedings against him.
Federal prosecutors previously decided to close two criminal cases against President Trump: an election interference case in Washington D.C. and a classified documents case in Florida.
Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.
