On Tuesday, July 2nd, New York judge Juan Merchan postponed the verdict for US presidential candidate Donald Trump in the case regarding hush money payments to a porn star. It will now occur on September 18th, Reuters informs.
The agency notes that earlier the verdict was scheduled for July 11, just a few days before the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, which will take place on July 15. But the fact that the verdict has been postponed means that Trump, who is the presumptive Republican candidate, may personally appear at the convention, which was previously in question.
The postponement occurred after lawyers for the former US president requested time to argue the necessity of dismissing his indictment in New York State court in Manhattan following a Supreme Court decision on July 1 stating that presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for official actions.
"Trump's lawyers on Monday asked Merchan to allow them to argue his conviction should be overturned due to the justices' 6-3 ruling on July 1, which also held that evidence related to presidents' official actions cannot be used to help prove criminal cases involving unofficial actions," the publication writes.
Earlier on Tuesday, prosecutors from the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, led by Alvin Bragg, stated that Trump's argument was "without merit," but agreed to postpone the verdict to give the former US president the opportunity to state his position.
As Reuters writes, Trump faces an uphill battle to dismiss the indictment in the bribery case, as most of the actions mentioned in the case were taken before he took office.
Now, Judge Juan Merchan will decide on the issue of punishing Trump, including whether he should be imprisoned, in the midst of the presidential election campaign leading up to the elections on November 5th.
In a written order, Merchan stated that he would make a decision on Trump's request by September 6th and a verdict would be issued in less than two weeks if the judge decides to uphold the indictment. Trump's lawyers are required to submit their arguments by July 10th, while prosecutors have until July 24th to respond.
Reuters concluded by reminding of the essence of Donald Trump's case:
"A Manhattan jury on May 30 found Trump guilty of falsifying business records to cover up his former lawyer Michael Cohen's $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to stay quiet about an alleged 2006 sexual encounter until after the 2016 election, in which Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton," the agency wrote.
It's worth noting that the US Supreme Court acknowledged that former President Donald Trump had immunity during his tenure.
However, this pertains solely to official decisions. In contrast, current US President Joe Biden has stated that the Supreme Court's decision on Trump's immunity sets a "dangerous precedent."
