Donald Trump gets rare no-penalty sentence in hush-money case — What does this mean for US President-elect?
US President-elect Donald Trump was sentenced to no punishment in his historic hush money case, a judgment that lets him return to the White House unencumbered by the threat of a jail term or a fine.
US President-elect Donald Trump was sentenced to an ‘unconditional discharge’ on Friday ahead of his second term in office. The development came nearly a year after he was convicted for falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments to a porn star. The verdict will mean no jail time, no probation and no fines for Trump — but places a judgment of guilt on his permanent record.
Trump called his conviction a ‘political witch-hunt’ and a ‘disgrace to the system’ as he appeared via video. He also claimed that the case had been pursued to ‘damage his reputation’ and make him lose the US Presidential elections.
“This has been a very terrible experience. I think it’s been a tremendous setback for New York, the New York court system. This is a case that Alvin Bragg did not want to bring…from what I read and what I hear, inappropriately handled before he got there. I called a legal fee a legal expense and for this, I got indicted. It’s incredible, actually,” he said.
Trump appeared virtually from Florida and sat silently without responding to a greeting from Merchan. Lawyers flanked the incoming POTUS on TV screens beamed to the courtroom with two American flags in the background. He was also seen wearing a red tie with white stripes.
What exactly is the case?
Trump was convicted in May 2024 on 34 counts of falsifying business records. The jury found that he falsified records kept by his company to hide the purpose of reimbursements to his then-lawyer Michael Cohen, who had made a $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels during Trump’s 2016 campaign to silence her claim of an extramarital sexual encounter.
Lawyers for the Republican leader have made extensive attempts to stall the case at every turn following his May 2024 conviction. Efforts have been made to try and get the conviction overturned, have the case dismissed or at ensure that the sentencing was postponed.
The US Supreme Court cleared the way for sentencing earlier this week after multiple delays. Trump had cited presidential immunity and argued that it would be a distraction to his presidential transition and undermine his standing as a world leader during his second term in office.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Business NewsNewsUs NewsDonald Trump gets rare no-penalty sentence in hush-money case — What does this mean for US President-elect?
First Published:10 Jan 2025, 08:40 PM IST
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