Former President Donald Trump is seeking to overturn his conviction in his Manhattan hush money trial using the Supreme Court’s recent immunity decision.
The Supreme Court’s Monday immunity decision most directly affected Trump’s Jan. 6 indictment, but the former president’s team believes it equally applies to his hush money case as well, the New York Times reported. Though the actions he was indicted for occurred while he was a candidate, Trump’s lawyers are likely to argue that the evidence prosecutors used against him was taken during his time in the presidency.
It remains to be seen whether Judge Juan Merchan will entertain the motion. The deadline for post-trial motions was last month, so he may tell Trump’s lawyers to wait until after the sentencing as part of the appeals process.
The letter won’t be public until at least Tuesday, the outlet reported, after which Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg will be able to respond.
In a 6-3 ruling on Monday, the Supreme Court found that presidents are granted “absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority” and “presumptive immunity” for all official acts. However, it held there is no immunity for “unofficial” acts.
The letter from Trump came hours after the Supreme Court decision and 10 days before Trump’s sentencing. It came the same day Bragg is expected to put forward his sentencing suggestion.
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On May 30, Trump became the first president in U.S. history to be convicted of a felony. He was found guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
The former president has affirmed his innocence and denied the alleged affair.