New York’s highest court has denied an application to halt a sentencing hearing in a criminal hush-money case involving Donald Trump. The case, which resulted in a conviction on 34 felony charges, has been a focal point of ongoing legal battles as the president-elect seeks to have the charges dismissed and the conviction overturned.
In an emergency application spanning 29 pages, Trump requested an immediate stay of the criminal proceedings, arguing that the rulings by the trial court were erroneous and failed to account for his claims of presidential immunity. The application specifically challenged two rulings: one rejecting his claim of immunity for official acts and another denying a motion to dismiss based on an assertion of sitting-presidential immunity extending into his transition period as president-elect.
Trump’s legal team argued that the commencement of appellate proceedings should automatically stay the trial court’s actions, citing precedent to support this claim. The filing also criticized the trial judge, prosecutors, and a former personal attorney, alleging bias and procedural flaws in the case. According to the application, the prosecution relied on the testimony of a former attorney whose credibility Trump’s team questioned, claiming this violated due process rights and undermined the case’s merit.
A unique argument presented in the application was that scheduling the sentencing hearing for January 10, 2025, just days before Trump’s inauguration, infringed on his constitutional rights. The filing claimed this timing posed irreparable harm to Trump and deprived him of his rights under the Constitution. This argument was also raised during oral arguments before an appellate judge, who noted that the sentencing date had been repeatedly delayed at Trump’s request. The appellate judge dismissed the request to further delay the proceedings.
In addition to the state-level appeal, Trump filed an emergency application with the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking to indefinitely postpone the criminal proceedings. Federal prosecutors have been ordered to respond to this application.
These developments represent the latest in a series of legal challenges stemming from Trump’s conviction. His legal team continues to argue that the case is politically motivated and flawed from its inception. However, courts at multiple levels have thus far rejected these claims, leaving the sentencing hearing on track as scheduled.
