US President Donald Trump
The ruling came after a three-judge panel of the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals asked Hellerstein to take a closer look at how a July 2024 Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity applied to Trump’s case. Trump’s lawyers argued that the Supreme Court’s July 2024 ruling should help overturn his conviction. On January 10, 2025, trial judge Juan Merchan sentenced him to an unconditional discharge, leaving the conviction in place.
It also said prosecutors cannot use evidence of official acts in criminal cases involving private conduct. US President Donald Trump ’s bid to wipe out his New York hush money conviction has hit another roadblock, with a federal judge ruling that the case cannot be moved from state to federal court. In Trump v. United States, the Supreme Court ruled that presidents have immunity from prosecution for official acts. Hellerstein, who was appointed by former Democratic president Bill Clinton, had already rejected Trump’s attempt to move the case to federal court twice. The appeals court later asked him to examine whether the evidence in question “relates to acts taken under color of the Presidency. Trump has also asked a New York state appeals court to throw out his conviction. Trump did not receive jail time or a fine for the conviction.
Manhattan-based US district judge Alvin Hellerstein on Friday rejected Trump’s latest attempt to shift the case, saying the conduct involved was personal and not part of his official duties as president. His lawyers notified the court on Friday that they would appeal Hellerstein’s decision.