Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg requested a July 24 deadline on Tuesday to respond to former President Donald Trump’s motion to scrap his business-record conviction in New York, signaling the sentencing will be delayed by at least two weeks.
Mr. Bragg’s office was responding to Mr. Trump’s request Monday to delay his July 11 sentencing after the Supreme Court ruled he’s entitled to immunity from prosecution for certain official acts.
“Although we believe defendant’s arguments to be without merit, we do not oppose his request for leave to file and his putative request to adjourn sentencing pending determination of his motion,” the office’s assistant DAs wrote to state Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan.
Mr. Trump’s attorneys argue that some evidence in the weekslong trial, including social media posts, was covered by Mr. Trump’s immunity status and shouldn’t have been used at trial.
The former president was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. His attorneys want to file papers on July 10 in support of their motion to set aside the conviction.
The Supreme Court’s decision on presidential immunity largely affects special counsel Jack Smith’s case alleging Mr. Trump conspired against U.S. voters in his attempt to overturn what the former president calls a rigged 2020 election. A federal judge in that case will have to sort out which allegations involve official acts versus unofficial ones. The justices said unofficial acts aren’t covered by immunity.
It’s unclear whether Mr. Trump can make a convincing argument against his state-level conviction in New York.
Previously, a federal judge refused to move the business-record case from New York to federal court, finding the allegations centered on the ex-president’s personal life and didn’t “reflect in any way the color of the president’s official duties.”
A jury on May 30 found Mr. Trump guilty of criminally concealing a $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. Prosecutors said Mr. Trump made the payment through Michael Cohen and concealed it in 2017 through misidentified checks to the lawyer, signaling an intent to violate election laws.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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