What happens to Trump’s criminal conviction now that he has been elected president?

“What happens to his conviction in New York now that the Americans have put a lawless man back in power?”

– Karen StaleyKort, Ambridge, Pennsylvania

Hello Karen,

Judge Juan Merchan has already adjourned Donald Trump’s condemn several times, most recent until November 26, so that this would happen after Election Day. But first comes the judge set up to rule Tuesday on whether the president-elect can overturn his 34 guilty verdicts for falsifying corporate records in light of the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling.

If Merchan sides with Trump, there will be no condemnation. The question would then be when a new trial would take place; As in the case of the state of Georgia, this would only be after Trump has left office. But if the judge rejects Trump’s attempt to overturn his guilty verdicts, that doesn’t mean the sentencing will automatically proceed as scheduled. Even if Trump had lost the election, his lawyers previously said they would immediately appeal any adverse decision, possibly to the Supreme Court. Thus, the date of the last conviction was not a certainty even before Trump’s presidential victory.

That victory could further complicate matters, as we could expect Trump’s lawyers to use his impending presidency to thwart further proceedings. But we’ll have to see what they do, what Merchan does in response, and what any appellate courts (including the Supreme Court) say about it.

In this case, detention is not mandatory. But if something is imposed, we should not expect a sitting president to serve a prison sentence. In that regard, even in a hypothetical world in which Trump lost the presidency and was sentenced to some prison time later this month, he would likely still remain free pending a lengthy appeals process. So it’s not just Trump’s return to the White House that would delay his incarceration or serve other sentencing terms, such as probation.

The next thing to be formally recorded is Merchan’s ruling Tuesday on whether Trump can revoke his guilty verdicts. But we are in uncharted territory, and we have learned in Trump’s cases that what would normally happen is not always what happens. We will definitely come back to it in next week’s newsletter.

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