{"id":2388859,"date":"2025-01-10T12:42:56","date_gmt":"2025-01-10T17:42:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-juan-merchan-sentences-trump-in-new-york-case\/"},"modified":"2025-01-10T12:45:08","modified_gmt":"2025-01-10T17:45:08","slug":"judge-juan-merchan-sentences-trump-in-new-york-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-juan-merchan-sentences-trump-in-new-york-case\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge Juan Merchan Sentences Trump in New York Case"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fjudge-juan-merchan-sentences-trump-in-new-york-case%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2388859&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>On Friday, President-elect Donald Trump was\u2062 sentenced in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-drops-appeal-to-move-manhattan-hush-money-case-to-federal-court\/\" title=\"Trump drops appeal to move Manhattan hush money case to federal court\">hush money\u2062 case<\/a> but received no punishment from \u200dthe judge, allowing him to assume office without facing \u2064jail time or fines. Trump had been convicted by a \u2064jury on all \u200c34 felony counts\u200c after \u2063a\u200b nearly two-month trial. \u2062Manhattan Judge Juan M. merchan considered various\u2063 factors before deciding on an &#8220;unconditional discharge,&#8221; stating that Trump&#8217;s legal protections as president\u2063 were significant.<\/p>\n<p>during the virtual court session \u2064from Florida, Trump characterized the trial \u2063as a &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">political witch hunt<\/a>&#8221; intended to harm his \u200breputation and \u2062affect the election.He has consistently\u2064 denied any wrongdoing, claiming that\u2064 he did not falsify business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to adult film actress \u200dStormy Daniels. Trump&#8217;s defense team has argued that he should benefit\u2064 from presidential immunity, following \u2064a Supreme Court ruling that provides significant legal protections for former presidents.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, Trump&#8217;s lawyers indicated his\u200b intention to appeal the verdict, although the appeal cannot \u200doccur until he is\u200b officially sentenced.\u200c The case highlights \u200bthe unprecedented nature of a convicted felon taking\u2064 on the presidency, as Trump will become the first in\u200b history to \u2063do so. the\u200c judge&#8217;s decision aims to\u2064 balance \u2064Trump&#8217;s ability to govern, respect the\u2064 jury&#8217;s verdict,\u2064 and uphold the principle that no one is above\u2063 the \u2064law.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>President-elect Donald Trump was sentenced Friday in his hush money case, but the judge declined to impose any punishment.<\/p>\n<p>The outcome cements <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/watch-john-fetterman-gives-view-co-hosts-reality-check-trumps-politically-motivated-conviction\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">his conviction<\/a> but frees him to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-chief-staff-susie-wiles-lays-law-white-house-employees-two-weeks-inauguration\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">return to the White House<\/a> unencumbered by the threat of a jail term or a fine.<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s was sentenced to an unconditional discharge after being charged with 34 felonies, put on trial for almost two months, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/must-watch-megyn-kelly-gives-democrats-brutal-warning-celebrating-trump-conviction\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">convicted<\/a> by a jury on every count.<\/p>\n<p>Manhattan Judge <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/judge-merchans-new-ruling-hush-money-case-called-massive-trump-win\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Juan M. Merchan<\/a> could have sentenced Trump to up to four years in prison.<\/p>\n<p>Merchan said, he must consider any aggravating factors before imposing a sentence, but the legal protection that Trump will have as president &ldquo;is a factor that overrides all others.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Despite the extraordinary breadth of those legal protections, one power they do not provide is that they do not erase a jury verdict,&rdquo; Merchan said.<\/p>\n<p>Trump, briefly addressing the court as he appeared virtually from his Florida home, said his criminal trial and conviction has &ldquo;been a very terrible experience&rdquo; and insisted he committed no crime.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mike-kelly-same-people-criticizing-trump-peddled-russia-collusion-hoax\/\" title=\"Mike Kelly: Same People Criticizing Trump Peddled Russia Collusion Hoax\">president-elect<\/a> again pilloried the case, the only one of his four criminal indictments that has gone to trial and possibly the only one that ever will.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been a political witch hunt. It was done to damage my reputation, so that I would lose the election, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/breaking-donald-trump-wins-2024-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">obviously, that didn&rsquo;t work<\/a>,&rdquo; Trump said.<\/p>\n<p>Trump called the case &ldquo;a weaponization of government&rdquo; and &ldquo;an embarrassment to New York.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>With Trump 10 days from inauguration, Merchan had indicated he planned a no-penalty sentence, called an unconditional discharge, and prosecutors didn&rsquo;t oppose it.<\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors said Friday that they supported a no-penalty sentence, but they chided Trump&rsquo;s attacks on the legal system throughout and after the case.<\/p>\n<p>As he appeared from his Florida home, Trump was seated with his lawyer Todd Blanche, whom he&rsquo;s tapped to serve as the second-highest ranking Justice Department official in his incoming administration.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Legally, this case should not have been brought,&rdquo; Blanche said, reiterating Trump&rsquo;s intention to appeal the verdict. That technically can&rsquo;t happen until he&rsquo;s sentenced.<\/p>\n<p>Regardless of the outcome, Trump will become the first person convicted of a felony to assume the presidency.<\/p>\n<p>The hush money case accused Trump of fudging his business&rsquo; records to hide a $130,000 payoff to porn actor <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/cnn-legal-analyst-stunned-stormy-daniels-disastrous-courtroom-admission-big-deal\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Stormy Daniels<\/a>. She was paid, late in Trump&rsquo;s 2016 campaign, not to tell the public about a sexual encounter she maintains the two had a decade earlier. He said nothing sexual happened between them. His lawyers said he wanted to squelch the stories to protect his family, not his campaign.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I never falsified business records. It is a fake, made up charge,&rdquo; the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nikki-haley-was-consulted-for-trumps-cabinet-but-did-not-want-position-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Nikki Haley was consulted for Trump&#039;s Cabinet but did not want position - Washington Examiner\">president-elect wrote<\/a> on his  platform last week.<\/p>\n<p>The Trump attorneys have argued Trump has presidential immunity from prosecution, and they got a boost in July from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/supreme-court-issues-highly-anticipated-ruling-trump-immunity-case\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Supreme Court<\/a> decision that affords former commanders-in-chief considerable immunity.<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s defense argued that immunity should have kept jurors from hearing some evidence, such as testimony about some of his conversations with then-White House communications director Hope Hicks.<\/p>\n<p>After Trump won the presidential election, his lawyers argued that the case had to be scrapped to avoid impinging on his upcoming presidency and his transition to the Oval Office.<\/p>\n<p>Merchan, a Democrat, repeatedly postponed the sentencing, initially set for July. But last week, he set Friday&rsquo;s date, citing a need for &ldquo;finality.&rdquo; He wrote that he strove to balance Trump&rsquo;s need to govern, the Supreme Court&rsquo;s immunity ruling, the respect due a jury verdict, and the public&rsquo;s expectation that &ldquo;no one is above the law.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s lawyers then attempted to block the sentencing. But Thursday night the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision not to delay the sentencing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-style: italic;\">The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President-elect Donald Trump was sentenced on Friday in his hush money case, but the judge chose not to impose any penalties. This decision confirms his conviction while allowing him to return to the White House without the risk of jail time or fines. Trump received an unconditional discharge after facing 34 felony charges, undergoing nearly two months of trial, and being found guilty on all counts. Judge Juan M. Merchan noted that he had to consider aggravating factors before sentencing but stated that Trump&#8217;s legal protections as president were a significant consideration<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2388860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/a4b76c7b41ee4d138268e5ec18a95f05-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[48281,33211,34272,12447,3634],"class_list":["post-2388859","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-judge-juan-merchan","tag-legal-news","tag-new-york-case","tag-sentencing","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/a4b76c7b41ee4d138268e5ec18a95f05-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2388859","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2388859"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2388859\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2388863,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2388859\/revisions\/2388863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2388860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2388859"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2388859"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2388859"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}