President-elect Donald Trump has asked the Supreme Court to pause proceedings in his New York criminal trial, including sentencing that is set to take place on Friday.
After two failed attempts to block sentencing from occurring, Trump’s lawyers have simultaneously turned to the New York Court of Appeals -the highest court in the state – and the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. for help.
In an emergency application on Wednesday, Trump’s lawyers said the court should intervene “to prevent grave injustice and harm to the institution of the Presidency and the operations of the federal government.”
Sentencing in the case, where the president-elect was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records in New York, is set to to happen just 10 days before the inauguration.
Much like previous requests, lawyers for the president-elect argue all criminal proceedings should be paused because Trump has immunity from criminal prosecution thanks to the Supreme Court’s ruling in Trump v. United States in July.
The court’s landmark decision determined that sitting presidents are entitled to immunity for “official acts” and so-called acts within the “outer perimeter” while in office. However, they did not define that.
Acting Justice Juan Merchan, the New York judge who presided over the hush money trial has already said that immunity does not apply to Trump’s criminal case and refused to drop the case or pause sentencing.
Merchan said Trump’s actions in his criminal case were “personal.”
In May, a jury of 12 New Yorkers found Trump guilty of falsifying business records. Prosecutors said Trump covered up hush money payments that he made to porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election to buy her silence over an alleged affair.
Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer, paid Daniels and Trump reimbursed him over several months, marking the reimbursements as payments for legal fees.
After Merchan denied Trump’s request to pause sentencing, the president-elect’s lawyers asked a New York state appellate court to intervene. After a brief hearing on Tuesday, an appellate court judge issued a one-page denial.
Now, in a desperate attempt to return to the White House free of any indictments or convictions, Trump’s lawyers are turning to the Supreme Court – a body that has consistently awarded the president-elect with his requests.
Trump’s lawyers are asking the court to decide if immunity extends to the president-elect, if he is entitled to paused proceedings while he appeals or if the evidence used in the case actually does fall under presidential immunity.
Sentencing in the case has been postponed multiple times. It was initially supposed to take place in July but was re-scheduled due to the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling, the 2024 presidential election and Trump’s win. Last week, Merchan issued a ruling determining sentencing would take place on Friday but said he would not sentence Trump to jail time.
Merchan and District Attorney Alvin Bragg have until Thursday at 10 a.m. to respond to Trump’s application.
