Donald Trump, a former U.S. President, who is now the President-elect, has been sentenced to an unconditional discharge by a New York court.
On Friday, January 10, a judge sentenced Donald Trump to an unconditional discharge for concealing hush money payments to a porn star, in spite of the US president-elect’s last-minute attempts to avoid becoming the first felon to hold the office.
The judge refused to impose prison time or fines on Trump, even though his May 2024 conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records carried the possibility of jail time. New York Judge Juan Merchan, Instead, instead, issued the lightest possible criminal sanction—an unconditional discharge, a measure that is relatively uncommon.
During the sentencing, Merchan remarked: “Never before has this court been presented with such a unique and remarkable set of circumstances.
“The only lawful sentence that permits entry of a judgment of conviction without encroaching on the highest office of the land is an unconditional discharge.”
Donald Trump himself attended the sentencing virtually while the judge, lawyers, and media physically filled the Manhattan courtroom, which had been the backdrop of a dramatic trial marked by legal disputes and Trump’s fiery public statements.
Before the discharge was issued, Donald Trump said: “This has been a terrible experience. I think it’s been a tremendous setback for New York and the New York court system.
“It was done to damage my reputation so I would lose the election.”
While appearing via video, Donald Trump was seen with two large U.S. flags behind him, wearing a red tie with white stripes, as he watched the proceedings with visible impatience.
During the trial, different witnesses came forth to testify that Trump had fraudulently concealed payments to porn star Stormy Daniels in an effort to prevent her from disclosing their alleged affair ahead of the 2016 presidential election, which Trump won.
Trump requested a suspension of the criminal proceedings after the New York State appeals court rejected his attempt to delay the hearing. However, the Supreme Court ruled that the sentencing could proceed. Prosecutors opposed postponing the sentencing, which was scheduled just 10 days before Trump is set to be sworn in for a second term, arguing that it was inappropriate for the Supreme Court to intervene while Trump still had legal options for appeal in New York.
The unconditional discharge imposed on Trump upholds the jury’s guilty verdict without imposing sanctions or restrictions on the president-elect. This also solidified Donald Trump’s status as the first former president convicted of a felony and the first President-elect to be criminally sentenced just before taking office.
Trump, now 78 years old, could have faced up to four years in prison if he had been slammed with the normal sentencing.
Recall that Donald Trump himself had repeatedly called the prosecution a “witch hunt” while the trial lasted.
