A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that he will not intervene in former President Donald Trump’s New York hush-money case, rejecting Trump’s attempt to shift decision-making to a federal court ahead of his upcoming criminal sentencing on September 18, told Axios.
Trump had sought to move the case out of state Judge Juan Merchan’s hands, arguing that Merchan was biased and that his conviction should be tossed. Trump also claimed that the trial violated the Supreme Court’s July 1 ruling on presidential immunity, which limits prosecutions related to official presidential acts.
However, federal Manhattan Judge Alvin Hellerstein dismissed these arguments, stating that claims about a state judge’s bias should be addressed by state appeals courts, not federal courts. Hellerstein also determined that moving the case to federal court at this stage was inappropriate, as Trump was not prosecuted for any official acts.
“Nothing in the Supreme Court’s opinion affects my previous conclusion that the hush money payments were private, unofficial acts, outside the bounds of executive authority,” Hellerstein wrote.
The case revolves around payments Trump made to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election. Trump was found guilty on May 30 of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors argued that Trump unlawfully interfered in the election by concealing Daniels’ allegation that she had an affair with him in 2006, a claim Trump denies.
The falsified business records concerned payments to Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, who paid Daniels $130,000 shortly before the election to keep her quiet. A Manhattan jury unanimously concluded that these payments were falsely labeled as part of an attorney-client agreement for legal expenses.
The charges carry the possibility of several years in prison, though there is no mandatory minimum sentence.
Trump’s effort to transfer the case to federal court is one of several strategies he is using to delay or avoid sentencing. He has invoked a presidential immunity argument and requested that Merchan postpone sentencing until after the 2024 presidential election. Merchan is expected to rule on the immunity argument by September 16, just two days before the sentencing date.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, which prosecuted the case, opposed Trump’s immunity argument but did not take a position on his request to delay sentencing.