Judge Juan Merchan has agreed to delay Donald Trump’s sentencing in New York until after the election, further evidence that the Republican presidential nominee is benefiting from the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling.
Trump’s lawyers cited the ruling in an effort to push through the Sept. 18 sentencing. Merchan had previously set a Sept. 16 date for a ruling on Trump’s motion to overturn his guilty pleas based on the immunity ruling, and his lawyers told the judge that if he rules against them on that motion, they will immediately appeal before sentencing.
On Friday, Merchan said he will now decide whether to quash the convictions on November 12 and then proceed (if necessary) to impose the sentence on November 26. Election day is November 5.
Merchan reluctantly postponed the case, writing to the parties on Friday that he would do so to avoid any appearance – “however unjustified,” the judge wrote – that the proceedings had been influenced by or attempted to influence the election.
“The Court is a fair, impartial, and apolitical institution,” Merchan wrote. “Adjourning the decision on the motion and imposing a sentence, if required, should remove any suggestion that the Court made a decision or imposed a sentence to favor or disadvantage a political party and/or a candidate for office.”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg did not oppose Trump’s request for a delay, instead deferring to the judge in a manner that made it easier for Merchan to grant Trump’s request. The Sept. 18 date had already been postponed, following the Supreme Court’s July 1 ruling in Trump v. United States, which raised questions about whether, in retrospect, state prosecutors improperly introduced evidence of official conduct to prove Trump’s guilt and, if so, what effect that had on the guilty verdicts entered in May before the immunity ruling.
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This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
