President-elect Donald Trump is set to be sentenced today on charges of business fraud related to hush money payment to Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential election.
Trump was first indicted in March 2023 by the Manhattan district attorney on state charges related to a hush-money payment to an adult-film star in 2016. In May 2024, he was found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree by 12 jurors.
Prosecutors alleged during the trial that Trump was part of an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election. They claimed he was part of an unlawful plan to suppress negative information and made a $130,000 hush money payment to adult-film star Stormy Daniels to keep her from speaking out about an alleged affair before the election – a claim Trump has denied.
On November 19, 2024, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office agreed to delay Trump’s sentencing to allow time for litigation around his expected motion to dismiss the case. The trial judge, Juan Merchan, postponed the sentencing and granted Trump’s request to file a motion to dismiss the case. In January 2025, Merchan rejected Trump’s effort to throw out the jury’s verdict and upheld the conviction.
A sentencing hearing has been set for January 10, 2025, but the judge indicated that the case is essentially over. Trump is set to be sworn in as president in less than two weeks, despite the looming conviction.