United States (U. S. ) President- elect Donald Trump has responded after being sentenced to an ” unconditional discharge” by Judge Juan Merchan at Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday. The sentencing comes just ten days before Trump’ s second inauguration, marking an extraordinary turn of events for the president- elect.
The decision follows Trump’ s conviction on all counts at his hush money trial last year, where he was found guilty of falsifying business records. The charges stemmed from payments made in October 2016 to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to silence claims of an alleged extramarital affair, which Trump denies.
The Supreme Court declined to intervene in the case, with justices ruling 5- 4 to allow Judge Merchan to proceed. Trump appeared virtually for the hearing and maintained his objection to the trial, repeating claims that he had been treated ” very, very unfairly. ” Despite the sentencing, Trump is pressing ahead with plans to file a fresh appeal, determined to clear his name.
Trump’ s conviction sets an unprecedented milestone, as he becomes the first convicted felon to hold the office of the presidency. Legal experts note that the ” unconditional discharge” ruling, while carrying no immediate punishment, does not erase the conviction and could carry long- term implications.