Julius Okorie
US President-elect, Donald Trump, has been sentenced in the ongoing hush money case, but has been handed “unconditional discharge”, meaning he is spared jail time and a fine.
Trump appeared sitting alongside his lawyer via video link in a New York courtroom, while the sentence was being read. The prosecution requested no prison, probation or fine as a sentence and that was exactly what the judge ruled.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelDespite getting what could best be dubbed soft landing, Trump said this has been a “terrible experience” and he is “totally innocent” while his attorney said the charges never should have been brought.
Judge Merchan called it an “extraordinary case” and a paradox with a lot of attention but ordinary court proceedings.
Last May, Trump was convicted on 34 counts relating to hush money paid to adult-film star. Stormy Daniels and how the payments were later reimbursed.
READ ALSO: America Wouldn’t Have Been Great Without Jesus, Says Returnee President Donald Trump
Judge Merchan said that as when facing any other defendant, he must consider any aggravating factors before imposing a sentence, but the legal protection that Trump will have as president “is a factor that overrides all others.”
Despite the extraordinary breadth of those legal protections, one power they do not provide is that they do not erase a jury verdict.
Trump, briefly addressing the court as he appeared virtually from his Florida home, said his criminal trial and conviction has “been a very terrible experience” and insisted he committed no crime, describing his ordeal as apolitical witch hunt.
“It’s been a political witch hunt. It was done to damage my reputation so that I would lose the election, and obviously, that didn’t work,” Mr Trump said.
He called the case “a weaponisation of government” and “an embarrassment to New York.” With Mr Trump 10 days from inauguration, Judge Merchan had indicated he planned a no-penalty sentence called an unconditional discharge, and prosecutors did not oppose it.
Prosecutors said on Friday that they supported a no-penalty sentence, but they criticised Trump’s attacks on the legal system throughout and after the case.
“The once and future president of the United States has engaged in a co-ordinated campaign to undermine its legitimacy,” prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
