NEW YORK: Donald Trump on Tuesday asked a New York state judge to dismiss the criminal case in which he was convicted in May of 34 felony counts involving hush money paid to a porn star in light of his victory in the Nov. 5 US presidential election.
Justice Juan Merchan last month delayed Trump’s previously scheduled Nov. 26 sentencing indefinitely to give him the chance to seek dismissal. Trump’s lawyers argue having the case loom over his four-year presidential term that begins on Jan. 20 would cause “unconstitutional impediments” to the Republican businessman-turned-politician’s ability to govern.
Prosecutors with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office supported delaying the sentencing to give Trump the chance to make his case for dismissal, though they said they would oppose that bid. The prosecutors have until Dec. 9 to respond.
The judge has not indicated when he would rule on Trump’s motion to dismiss, and has not set a new date for sentencing. Bragg’s office has suggested he defer all proceedings in the case until Trump, 78, leaves the White House in 2029.
The New York case stemmed from a $130,000 payment Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels for her silence before the 2016 election about a sexual encounter she has said she had a decade earlier with Trump, who denies it.
A Manhattan jury found Trump guilty of falsifying business records to cover up his reimbursement of Cohen. It was the first time a US president — former or sitting — had been convicted of or charged with a criminal offense.
Trump pleaded not guilty in the case, which he has sought to portray as a politically motivated attempt by Bragg, a Democrat, to interfere with his presidential campaign.
Falsification of business records is punishable by up to four years in prison. Before he was elected, experts said it was unlikely — but not impossible — that Trump would face time behind bars, with punishments such as a fine or probation seen as more likely.
Trump’s victory over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5 election made the prospect of imposing a sentence of jail or probation even more politically fraught and impractical, given that a sentence could have impeded his ability to conduct the duties of the presidency.
Trump was charged in three additional state and federal criminal cases in 2023, one involving classified documents he kept after leaving office and two others involving his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss.
He pleaded not guilty in all three cases. None have gone to trial.
A Washington judge on Nov. 25 dismissed the federal criminal case over his attempts to hold onto power. Prosecutors had moved to drop both that case and the classified documents case due to a Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president.
Trump also faces state criminal charges in Georgia over his bid to reverse his 2020 loss in that state, but that case remains in limbo.
As president, Trump would have no power to shut down the New York or Georgia cases because they were filed in state courts.
Trump in November nominated his defense lawyers in the hush money case, Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, to serve senior roles at the Justice Department during his administration.
Trump urges judge to dismiss hush money case due to election victory
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Trump urges judge to dismiss hush money case due to election victory
- Trump’s lawyers argue having the case loom over his four-year presidential term that begins on Jan. 20 would cause “unconstitutional impediments” to the Republican businessman-turned-politician’s ability to govern
US accuses South Africa of harassing US officials working with Afrikaners
WASHINGTON: Washington on Thursday accused South Africa of harassing US government employees working with Afrikaners, the white minority to whom President Donald Trump is granting refugee status, in the latest escalation of tensions.
The State Department said that passport information of US officials was leaked and warned in a statement that “failure by the South African government to hold those responsible accountable will result in severe consequences.”
South Africa replied that the allegation was unsubstantiated and rejected “any suggestion of state involvement in such actions.”
The accusations came after South Africa arrested and expelled Wednesday seven Kenyans brought in by the US government to assist in processing Afrikaners seeking to move to the United States.
President Donald Trump’s administration has claimed Afrikaners are victims of discrimination and even “genocide,” which the Pretoria government strongly denies.
South Africa said the Kenyans arrested at a processing center on Tuesday were on tourist visas that did not allow them to work — the type of violation seized on by Trump as he carries out mass deportations from the United States.
The State Department alleged that Americans had also been briefly held in the raid, which it said the United States “condemns in the strongest terms.”
It added that officials’ passport information had been made public.
So-called doxxing, or revealing personal information, “is an unacceptable form of harassment” and puts people in harm’s way, the State Department said.
It did not immediately provide further details on the purported incident.
‘Seeking clarity’
South Africa “noted an unsubstantiated allegation regarding the private information” and was seeking clarity from Washington, the foreign ministry in Pretoria said later.
“We categorically reject any suggestion of state involvement in such actions,” it said in a statement.
The government has already said no US officials were arrested in Tuesday’s raid, which was not carried out at a diplomatic site.
The seven Kenyan nationals who were expelled had violated South African law by working without the correct permits, the foreign ministry repeated.
“The government will not negotiate its sovereignty and the implementation of the rule of law,” it said.
Trump has repeatedly attacked South Africa’s post-apartheid government over what he calls persecution of the Afrikaners, an allegation that had gained ground online with the far-right.
He has been increasingly open on his desire to rid the United States of immigrants other than white Europeans and all but ended the once-generous US refugee resettlement program, which now only accepts Afrikaners among all the world’s people.
The State Department in a separate statement Thursday confirmed it did not invite South Africa to an initial meeting on planning next year’s Group of 20 summit, the first time a member of the bloc is being excluded.
