US President-elect Donald Trump appears remotely at his sentencing hearing before New York State Judge Juan Merchan with his attorney Todd Blanche (left) at Manhattan Criminal Court on January 10, 2025 in New York City.
Curtis Means | Getty Images
President Donald Trump was sentenced Friday without any penalties in a criminal money case in New York, 10 days before his inauguration for a second term in the White House.
Manhattan Judge Juan Merchan sentenced Trump to “unconditional release,” meaning no prison, probation or fine.
“This has been a very horrific experience,” Trump, who attended the hearing remotely, said before receiving the ruling.
“This was a political witch hunt,” he said, claiming the case was filed “to damage my reputation so that I can lose the election.”
A jury in May convicted Trump of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a $130,000 hush-money payment to his then-personal attorney, which he made to porn star Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 presidential election. Daniels was paid for her silence. Regarding allegations that she once had sex with Trump a decade ago, which the president-elect has denied.
Merchan said unconditional release is the only legal sentence he can issue without encroaching on the office of the presidency.
Merchan said that protecting this position “is a factor that trumps all others.”
He added: “Donald Trump, an ordinary citizen, and Donald Trump, a criminal defendant, will not be entitled to such great protection.”
The judge's actions will officially make Trump the first criminal convict ever to occupy the Oval Office.
Attorney General Joshua Steinglass noted at the beginning of the hearing that the charges against Trump carry a penalty of up to four years in state prison.
But Steinglass said, “The people recommend an unconditional release sentence.”
He explained: “We must respect the presidency, and keep in mind that this accused will be inaugurated as president within ten days.”
But the prosecutor also criticized Trump for his sustained attacks on the justice system throughout the case, saying the president-elect “has caused lasting harm to the public perception of the criminal justice system.”
Trump appeared on the screen wearing a red striped tie and sitting in front of American flags, and he frowned and appeared bored during Steinglass's remarks.
Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche responded that he disagreed with the prosecutor about the validity of the case and about Trump's conduct.
“It is a sad day for President Trump and his family and friends, but it is also… a sad day for this country,” said Blanche, who was chosen by Trump to be Deputy US Attorney General in the next administration.
Thursday's session comes a day after Trump and his wife, Melania Trump, attended the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter in Washington. The Trumps sat with every living former president.
On Thursday evening, the US Supreme Court lifted the last legal obstacle to sentencing Trump, and rejected his request to obstruct the proceedings in this case.
The decision was narrow — 5 to 4 — with Trump-appointed Justice Amy Coney Barrett joining fellow conservative John Roberts and three liberal justices to issue the majority decision.
The ruling noted that Trump's sentence would impose a “relatively insignificant” burden on his presidential responsibilities and that he still has the right to appeal allegations that Merchan improperly allowed certain evidence into the trial.
Trump's lawyers argue that he is immune from criminal prosecution, but courts have repeatedly rejected that claim as it relates to the secret money issue because he was not yet president when the initial conduct in the case occurred.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
