Trump hush-money sentence delayed as he leverages Supreme Court immunity to fight his conviction
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- Donald Trump is using his broad new immunity powers to fight his hush-money conviction.
- A July 11 sentencing will be pushed back to a yet-determined date as both sides argue over a possible retrial.
- Prosecutors say Trump's efforts are "without merit," but they are agreeing to a brief delay.
Manhattan prosecutors on Tuesday agreed to delay Donald Trump's hush-money sentencing, saying that they need time to fight his efforts to overturn his conviction in the wake of Monday's Supreme Court immunity ruling.
"Although we believe defendant's arguments to be without merit, we do not oppose his request for leave to file" a challenge to the May 30 conviction, prosecutors wrote in a letter to the sentencing judge, New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan.
The defense has asked Merchan's permission to file a formal challenge of conviction by July 10 — just one day before Trump's original July 11 sentencing date.
"We respectfully request a deadline of July 24, 2024 — two weeks after defendant's requested deadline — to file and serve a response" to Trump's arguments, prosecutors wrote Merchan on Tuesday.
A firm schedule for filings, and a new sentencing date, will likely be set soon, once Merchan agrees to let Trump challenge the verdict, a formality the judge may grant later Tuesday.
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