Alvin Bragg’s Office Fights Trump’s Effort to Delay Hush Money Proceedings

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office is seeking to fight against former President Donald Trump’s efforts to delay his hush money case proceedings.
On Tuesday, Bragg’s office sent a letter to the case’s judge, Juan M. Merchan, urging him to not delay upcoming rulings on the sentencing date and Trump’s efforts to have the case overturned.
Merchan is expected to rule on Trump’s efforts to overturn the verdict in the hush money case on September 16, and Trump’s sentencing date is scheduled for September 18. However, Merchan is also expected to rule on a potential delay to the sentencing date in the coming days.
In May, Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to claims he orchestrated a hush money payment to former adult film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election to avoid exposing an alleged affair. Trump had denied a sexual relationship with Daniels and maintains his innocence.
The sentencing has already been delayed once after the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling in July, and Trump’s legal team has requested that the sentencing be delayed again until after the presidential election.
In a letter on Tuesday, Assistant District Attorney Matthew Colangelo reaffirmed that prosecutors have not taken a stance on delaying sentencing, leaving Judge Merchan to make an “appropriate post-trial schedule.”
Trump’s lawyers have argued that sentencing him as scheduled, just two days after Merchan’s anticipated ruling on immunity, wouldn’t provide enough time to consider next steps, including a potential appeal, if Merchan upholds the verdict.
Lawyers for the former president have also argued that the September 18 sentencing date could be election interference, as its only weeks before the November presidential election. Trump’s lawyers have said that the former president could be sentenced as early voting in the election begins.
However, in his letter, Colangelo said that prosecutors were willing to hear a schedule that gives “adequate time” for Merchan to rule on Trump’s motion to have the verdict overturned, while also holding the sentencing hearing “without unreasonable delay.”
Last week, an attempt by Trump’s legal team to remove his New York felony case to federal court weeks ahead of his scheduled sentencing hearing was rejected by the court’s clerk.
In an order, the court’s clerk said that Trump’s efforts had been filed under the “wrong event type” and did not include an “order granting permission to file the pleading” or an order granting of “leave” by the state court.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.