N.Y. appellate judge declines to block Trump’s Friday hush money sentencing

[ad_1] A New York appeals court docket choose on Tuesday denied Donald Trump's bid for an emergency order halting the president-elect's scheduled sentencing Friday on felony fees within the hush cash case.

Justice Ellen Gesmer rejected the emergency keep request following transient arguments between Trump lawyer Todd Blanche and a lawyer from the Manhattan district lawyer's workplace.

"There has by no means been a case like this," Blanche advised Gesmer within the listening to on the state Appellate Division, a mid-level appeals court docket.

Blanche argued that Trump is already protected by presidential immunity and "shouldn't must undergo any authorized course of."

Steven Wu of the Manhattan district lawyer's workplace urged the choose reject the request.

"This can be a declare that the president-elect is entitled to immunity, and there's no assist for that," he mentioned, including that the "declare is so baseless that there isn't any foundation for any form of keep right here."

"There's one president at a time," Wu mentioned.

The choose requested the DA lawyer about Trump's declare that the continuing can be disruptive to his presidential transition.

Wu responded that the continuing can be digital and would seemingly take about an hour.

Blanche countered {that a} sentencing is "a really large deal."

Trump's petition mentioned the appeals court docket must grant “an instantaneous keep of any additional felony proceedings" within the trial court docket to "forestall ongoing violations of the constitutional rights of President Trump and a threatened disruption of the Presidential transition, a course of that instantly considerations america of America’s nationwide safety and very important pursuits."

They contend that Trump is already protected by presidential immunity so he cannot be sentenced, and that his conviction in Could of final yr ought to be thrown out on different presidential immunity grounds.

Decide Juan Merchan postponed Trump's scheduled sentencing within the wake of the U.S. Supreme Courtroom’s ruling setting a brand new commonplace for presidential immunity that month.

Merchan then present in a ruling final month that Trump would not have immunity till he is sworn in as president. In a separate order final week, the choose directed Trump's sentencing on 34 felony counts of falsifying enterprise data to happen on Friday morning, and mentioned he plans on giving him an unconditional discharge. Meaning the conviction would stand, however he wouldn't be subjected to any punishment.

Merchan rejected Trump's request for a keep on Monday.

Prosecutors from Manhattan District Legal professional Alvin Bragg's workplace mentioned in a court docket submitting Monday that there is no cause to delay the sentencing any longer.

The DA’s workplace additionally contended that now's “the least burdensome time” for Trump to be sentenced.

As president-elect he "has no viable declare of presidential immunity from bizarre felony course of” and “shouldn't be but engaged in any official presidential capabilities that might be disrupted by the sentencing,” they wrote.

Trump was convicted in Could of falsifying data associated to hush cash that his then-attorney Michael Cohen paid grownup movie star Stormy Daniels within the closing days of the 2016 presidential election. Daniels testified she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, a declare he has denied.