SCOTUS delivers key ruling on presidential immunity
Fox News correspondent Bryan Llenas reports on former President Trump’s response to the Supreme Court's ruling on presidential immunity, impacting special counsel Jack Smith’s election subversion case.
Former President Trump on Monday moved to overturn his criminal conviction in Manhattan after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a former president has substantial immunity for official acts committed while in office.
The high court's 6-3 decision stemmed from charges brought against Trump in a different matter – a federal case brought by special counsel Jack Smith related to the events of the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol breach and any alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
But Trump's attorneys swiftly acted in seeking to apply the new standard to the Manhattan case, too. Trump was convicted last month on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. He had pleaded not guilty to all counts.
Trump's legal team asked permission to file a motion to set aside the conviction and delay sentencing, which had been scheduled for next week, in a letter sent to Judge Juan Merchan on Monday. Merchan has received the letter, a person familiar with the matter confirmed to Fox News Digital.
Donald Trump arrives to Trump Tower, Thursday, May 30, 2024, after being found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. (Felipe Ramales for Fox News Digital)
The Trump team's letter asks for permission to file a motion to vacate the jury's verdict, asks for a delay of the July 11 sentencing, and cites the high court's decision in arguing that evidence was included at trial that should not have been admitted.
The letter came on the same day that the district attorney's office sent its sentencing recommendations to Merchan – who presided over the Manhattan trial – though it remains unclear whether that will be seen by the public, per reporting from The New York Times.
To file a motion in New York, defendants must first request permission from the judge in the case.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the DA's office for further comment.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This report has been updated to clarify the status of the Trump legal team's push to vacate the conviction in his New York case.
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