Trump files motion to stay 'unlawful sentencing' in New York case
President-elect Trump filed a motion to stay the Jan. 10 sentencing in the New York v. Trump case, Fox Digital has learned.
"Today, President Trump’s legal team moved to stop the unlawful sentencing in the Manhattan D.A.’s Witch Hunt. The Supreme Court’s historic decision on Immunity, the state constitution of New York, and other established legal precedent mandate that this meritless hoax be immediately dismissed," Trump spokesman and incoming White House communications director Steven Cheung told Fox Digital on Monday morning.
NEW YORK JUDGE SETS TRUMP SENTENCING DAYS BEFORE INAUGURATION
"The American People elected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate that demands an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and all of the remaining Witch Hunts. We look forward to uniting our country in the new administration as President Trump makes America great again," Cheung continued.
New York Judge Juan Merchan set Trump's sentencing date in the case earlier this month, ahead of his inauguration as president on Jan. 20. The former and upcoming president had requested the verdict in the case be vacated based on the Supreme Court's presidential immunity decision last year, which was denied by Merchan.
Trump is set to be sentenced on Friday, Jan. 10, at 9:30 a.m. Merchan has already said he will not sentence the president-elect to prison, and instead issue a sentence of an "unconditional discharge," which means there would be no punishment imposed.
NY JUDGE ANNOUNCES UNCONDITIONAL DISCHARGE SENTENCING FOR TRUMP ON JAN 10
Trump was found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in the Manhattan case in May. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office worked to prove that Trump falsified business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to former porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election to quiet her claims of an alleged affair with Trump in 2006.
Trump has maintained his innocence in the case and repeatedly railed against it as an example of lawfare promoted by Democrats in an effort to hurt his election efforts ahead of November.
"Virtually ever legal scholar and pundit says THERE IS NO (ZERO!) CASE AGAINST ME. The Judge fabricated the facts, and the law, no different than the other New York Judicial and Prosecutorial Witch Hunts. That’s why businesses are fleeing New York, taking with them millions of jobs, and BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN TAXES. The legal system is broken, and businesses can’t take a chance in getting caught up in this quicksand. IT’S ALL RIGGED, in this case against a political opponent, ME!!!" Trump posted to Truth Social on Sunday evening of the case.
Trump’s sentencing in the case has been repeatedly delayed. Trump's lawyers had asked Merchan to overturn the former president’s guilty verdict after the Supreme Court ruled in July that former presidents have substantial immunity from prosecution for official acts in office, but not for unofficial acts.