A judge upheld President-elect Donald Trump’s conviction in his hush-money case, with his sentencing scheduled just a little over a week before he’s due to return to the White House. However, he’s not expected to face jail time.
Judge Juan Merchan rejected Trump’s push to throw out the case on presidential immunity grounds. Judge Merchan said he would sentence President-elect Trump on an unconditional discharge, a rare and lenient alternative to jail or probation.
While Merchan said that he can’t determine Trump’s sentence yet without hearing from Trump and others in the case, he said his unconditional discharge decision means Trump will avoid serious punishment, but his conviction remains on his record.
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He also said his choice respects the sanctity of the jury’s guilty verdict on 34 counts of falsifying business records.
The charges involved an alleged scheme to hide a hush money payment to Stormy Daniels in the last weeks of Trump’s first campaign in 2016.
The judge set Trump’s sentencing hearing for Jan. 10. He can appear virtually or in person.
Trump’s lawyers haven’t commented yet on the judge’s decision. However, they previously said they would appeal any effort to sentence him before inauguration day.
Editor’s note: In a previous version of this story, Straight Arrow News incorrectly reported that President-elect Donald Trump would be sentenced on a conditional charge. Judge Juan Merchan said he would actually sentence Trump to an unconditional discharge. Straight Arrow News deeply regrets this error, which has been corrected as of 1/09/2025.
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