The judge presiding over the New York hush money case involving former President Donald Trump ruled on Wednesday that Trump is not immune from prosecution, citing his failure to timely invoke the defense of presidential immunity..
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Trump
According to Judge Juan Merchan, Trump was fully aware of his potential ability to claim presidential immunity when he was indicted a year ago on charges related to falsifying business records in connection with a hush payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. However, Trump neglected to raise the defense within the 45-day period specified by statute.
While Merchan refrained from ruling on the substance of Trump’s immunity claim, he emphasized the importance of timely invocation and criticized Trump’s delayed response, stating that Trump had numerous opportunities to assert presidential immunity long before March 7, 2024.
The judge made a clear distinction between Trump’s immunity claim in the New York case and his argument in the federal election interference case, where Trump contends that he cannot be prosecuted for actions taken while in office. The U.S. Supreme Court is set to consider this argument later this month.
In the hush money case, Merchan noted that Trump did not attempt to argue that the alleged falsification of business records constituted an official act.
Last April, Trump pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment alleging falsification of business records related to a hush money payment made by his former attorney Michael Cohen to Daniels just before the 2016 presidential election. Jury selection for the trial is slated to begin on April 15 in New York City, with Trump maintaining his innocence throughout the proceedings.
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