NEW YORK CITY—President-elect Donald Trump is expected to be sentenced on Jan. 10 in his business records case, 10 days before his inauguration.
New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan has already indicated that he won’t give Trump any prison time or monetary punishment.
In a Jan. 3 order, Merchan said his inclination is not to impose any sentence of incarceration and that given concerns about presidential immunity, “an unconditional discharge appears to be the most viable solution.”
Trump is set to appear virtually rather than in person.
With an unconditional discharge, Merchan isn’t expected to impose any meaningful punishment but rather will likely enter a judgment of conviction and offer a statement condemning Trump’s actions.
“He’s going to take an opportunity to try to give Trump a tongue lashing, to try to make him look bad,” Heritage Foundation Vice President John Malcolm told The Epoch Times. Malcolm, who directs the foundation’s Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, said Merchan may accuse Trump of disrespecting the rule of law but ultimately not impose any sentence because Trump is about to take office.
The sentencing comes after a nearly two-year legal battle that started with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg indicting Trump in April 2023. More than a year later, in May 2024, a jury found Trump guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in relation to alleged payments to adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels.
As the case played out, Merchan imposed multiple gag orders on Trump, held him in contempt 10 times, and threatened jail time. Merchan accused Trump on Jan. 3 of having disdain for the judiciary.
Merchan’s comments were made as he rejected the idea that Trump’s character should serve as a basis for throwing out the jury verdict.
“Defendant’s disdain for the Third Branch of government, whether state or federal, in New York or elsewhere, is a matter of public record,” he said. “Indeed, Defendant has gone to great lengths to broadcast on social media and other forums his lack of respect for judges, juries, grand juries, and the justice system as a whole.”
Trump has denied wrongdoing and derided the case as illegitimate.
Just before sentencing, he filed multiple appeals in order to stave off the sentencing date and challenge the legitimacy of the case.
By Sam Dorman
