Donald Trump cited numerous legal scholars in criticizing Judge Juan Merchan for ruling that he would be convicted in the Stormy Daniels hush money case just 10 days before his inauguration.
Merchan said the Republican president-elect could appear in New York in person or virtually for his sentencing on January 10.
Although the judge said it is unlikely that Trump, 78, will be jailed and that he could give him “unconditional discharge,” freeing him from fines and probation, Trump was furious in a pair of messages for Truth on Friday evening Social.
He named 10 legal analysts who he said called the “witch hunt” of a case “non-existent” and then called it “nothing but a rigged charade.”
He then called “acting” Judge Merchan “a radical partisan” and called the verdict “consciously illegal” and “contrary to our Constitution.”
“If it continues, it would mean the end of the presidency as we know it,” Trump added.
He says that “Merchan has so little respect for the Constitution that he is imposing an illegal gag order on me, your President and the newly elected President so that I cannot expose his and his family’s disqualifying and illegal conflicts.”
Trump is furious that he is “not allowed to defend myself,” calling it a violation of his First Amendment rights.
Donald Trump cited numerous legal scholars when he criticized Judge Juan Merchan for ruling that he will be sentenced in the Stormy Daniels hush money case just 10 days before his inauguration.
He then suggested that the case should have been dropped, just as Special Prosecutor Jack Smith did.
‘While the deranged Jack Smith was sent back to The Hague after losing all his politically fabricated cases against me, Merchan, who is far worse and even more corrupt than Smith in his fight for my hopeless political opponents, just can’t stop it with this charade,” he said.
Trump ended with, “Is it because of his conflicts and relationships that he continues to break the law? This has to stop! It’s time to end the Lawfare once and for all so we can come together as one nation and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!’
In a dramatic proceeding on Friday afternoon, the judge denied Trump’s request to dismiss the case and pronounce the guilty verdict against him.
Merchan wrote that this was the “most viable solution to ensure finality,” while also allowing Trump to continue his call.
Trump faced possible four years behind bars.
In May, a jury found Trump guilty of 34 counts of falsifying company records to conceal a $130,000 payment to a porn star – Stormy Daniels – to keep her quiet about their alleged affair ahead of the 2016 presidential election. years earlier.
In dramatic court testimony, Daniels went into salacious and lurid details about the night she claimed she spent with Trump at a charity golf tournament in Nevada. He denies that the meeting took place.
Merchan said the Republican president-elect could appear in New York in person or virtually for his sentencing on Jan. 10.
Donald Trump is to be sentenced in the criminal case in which he was convicted of criminal charges involving the payment of hush money to a porn star on January 10.
Lawyers for Trump argue that the case should be dismissed now so that it does not hinder his ability to govern once he takes the oath of office on January 20, 2025.
They also argue that the case should be dismissed because of the Supreme Court’s ruling in July that the president of the United States has immunity from prosecution for official actions while in office.
The case centered on special counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of Trump for allegedly masterminding efforts to overturn the 2020 election during his time in office, including on January 6 during the Capitol riot.
In Trump’s second motion to dismiss the case since his conviction in May, his lawyers argued that allowing the case to hang over him during his presidency would hamper his ability to govern.
Trump’s first motion — which argued that the case violated the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity — was unsuccessful.
Merchan noted last month that the The evidence presented at the trial earlier this year was “entirely related to unofficial conduct” and therefore did not amount to official actions as president.
“This Court concludes that if there was an error with respect to the introduction of the disputed evidence, such error was harmless in light of the overwhelming evidence of guilt,” Merchan wrote.
A jury found Trump guilty in May of 34 counts of falsifying company records to conceal a $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet
In a dramatic filing Friday afternoon, Judge Juan Merchan denied the new president’s request to dismiss the case and guilty verdict because of his election victory.
Daniels’ testimony at last year’s trial lasted two days and included salacious details about her alleged affair with the newly elected president.
Lawyers for Trump argue that the case involving porn star Stormy Daniels should now be dismissed
“Even if this Court has held that the challenged evidence constitutes official acts under the auspices of Trump’s decision, which it does not, Defendant’s motion is still denied because the introduction of the challenged evidence constitutes harmless error and does not process error has occurred. .’
Trump lashed out in a post on Truth Social in December, calling it a “completely illegal, psychotic order” by the “corrupt and biased” judge.
Prosecutors last week asked a New York judge to spare Trump jail time over his hush-money conviction, in an effort to prevent the case from being dismissed altogether.