President-elect Donald Trump He was sentenced to unconditional release on Friday after being found guilty of falsifying business records stemming from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's years-long investigation.
The president-elect attended the sentencing session virtually, after fighting to obstruct the process all the way to the United States supreme court this week. Trump sat next to his defense attorney, Todd Blanche.
Trump files motion to stay 'unlawful ruling' in New York case
Trump described the case and his sentence as a “tremendous setback for the American court system.”
“This is a huge embarrassment to the state of New York,” Trump said, adding that people watched the trial live and voted “decisively” to elect him president.
Judge Juan Merchan set January 10, just ten days before he was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States.
From left to right: Judge Juan Merchan, former President Donald Trump, and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. (Getty Images, AP Images)
Merchan did not sentence the president-elect to prison, instead giving him unconditional release, meaning no punishment imposed — no jail time, fines, or probation. The ruling also preserves Trump's ability to appeal the conviction.
“After careful analysis, this court has determined that the only statutory provision that allows for a guilty verdict is unconditional release,” Merchan said on Friday. “At this time, I am imposing this sentence to cover all 34 counts.”
“Sir, I wish you success as you serve your second term,” Merchan added.
When setting the sentencing date last week, Merchan said it was unlikely he would “impose any prison sentence”, but rather an “unconditional release” ruling, meaning no punishment would be imposed.
Trump filed an appeal to block the ruling from going forward with the New York State Court of Appeals. That court rejected his request.
Trump also filed an emergency request with the US Supreme Court, claiming that it “immediately order a stay of the criminal proceedings pending in the Supreme Court of New York County, New York.”
The Supreme Court denied the request, saying that “Judge Sotomayor’s request for a stay and referral to the court is denied, among other things, for the following reasons.”
President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Tuesday, January 7, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
“First, the alleged violations of evidence in the trial of President-elect Trump may be addressed in state court in the regular course on appeal,” the Supreme Court order filed Thursday night said. “The decision will impose on the president-elect his responsibilities, which is relatively immaterial in light of the court’s stated intent to impose a sentence of unconditional release” after a brief virtual hearing.
The order also noted that “Justice Thomas, Justice Alito, Justice Gorsuch, and Justice Kavanaugh will grant the request.”
The United States Supreme Court poses for its official portrait in the East Conference Room of the Supreme Court Building on October 7, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Trump needs five votes for his request to be approved. The memorandum on the order notes that Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett voted with Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Katanji Brown-Jackson.
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Trump will be sworn in as the 47th President of the United States on January 20.
Trump has insisted on his innocence in the case and repeatedly criticized it as an example of the “lawfare” promoted by Democrats in an attempt to harm his electoral efforts before November.
