Donald Trump‘s New York criminal sentencing date has been pushed back to Sept. 18 as a judge considers whether to toss out the conviction after a bombshell Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity.
Trump was originally scheduled for sentencing on July 11, at which point Judge Juan Merchan would have the option of giving Trump jail or prison time. Trump was convicted of falsifying business records in order to hide reimbursing his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, for a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
However, Merchan delayed any sentencing to allow time for Trump to file a formal motion asking for the conviction to be completely tossed out, for prosecutors to respond, and for Merchan to rule.
Reached out to for comment, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung directed USA TODAY to a Truth Social post in which Trump claimed “TOTAL EXONERATION!” Trump added that the Supreme Court’s decision ends all the “Witch Hunts” against him.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Merchan also said in his Tuesday decision that he has delayed prosecutors’ original July 1 deadline to file their sentencing recommendation. He didn’t specify a new deadline.
What evidence does Trump say was improper?
Trump’s lawyers said in a Monday letter to Merchan that evidence introduced at the trial runs afoul of the Supreme Court’s Monday ruling that presidents are immune from prosecution for their official acts if the prosecution risks intruding on their presidential authority and functions.
Based on that ruling, Trump’s lawyers are arguing that witness testimony from the trial about events at the Oval Office was improper. That includes former White House aide Hope Hicks’ testimony that Trump asked for her thoughts on a 2018 Wall Street Journal story about the hush money payment. She said she believed he was glad the story hadn’t come out before the election.
Trump’s legal team is also targeting social media posts and call records introduced at the trial from when Trump was president, including a tweet by Trump that tried to distance his payments to Cohen from his campaign. Trump said in the tweet that the payments had “nothing to do with the campaign.”
Prosecutors responded to the Trump letter Tuesday, writing to Merchan that they didn’t believe Trump’s immunity arguments have merit, but they also weren’t opposed to delaying sentencing in order to address them.
Trump faces sentencing on 34 felony convictions that each carry a four-year maximum prison sentence, but no minimum sentence.
In early April, Merchan rejected a motion from Trump to delay the trial after the Supreme Court announced it would review the immunity issue. The motion was one of several efforts by Trump to delay the trial. Merchan said Trump raised the issue too late.
