For former President Donald Trump, legal challenges continue to pile up as Judge Juan Merchan denied his request to delay the criminal hush money case against him in New York. Trump had sought to delay the trial until the Supreme Court rules on the issue of presidential immunity—a defense he has used in all of his ongoing criminal cases. However, Merchan deemed the request untimely, stating that Trump had ample opportunities to raise the claim of presidential immunity before filing the motion in March 2024, just weeks before the trial was set to begin.
The criminal case against Trump in New York involves charges of falsifying business records related to payments made to his attorney Michael Cohen in 2017. Prosecutors allege that Trump misrepresented these payments as funds for legal services when they were actually meant as hush money to silence adult film actress Stormy Daniels about an alleged affair with Trump. Trump’s argument of presidential immunity aims to prevent certain evidence from being used at trial, particularly statements he made in 2018 that implicated his involvement in a “pressure campaign” on Cohen. The concept of presidential immunity remains legally untested, and prosecutors have contested Trump’s claims in all four of his criminal cases.
Merchan’s ruling on Wednesday clears the way for Trump’s criminal trial to proceed as scheduled on April 15. This decision comes amidst ongoing legal battles for the former president, who is also awaiting a Supreme Court ruling on the issue of presidential immunity. The Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on the matter later this month and is expected to issue a decision before the end of its term in June. Trump has previously sought the Supreme Court’s intervention in his federal indictment related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, arguing that as a former president, he should still be shielded by executive immunity.
In addition to the denial of Trump’s motion, Judge Merchan recently extended a gag order against the former president, prohibiting him from making public comments about the court or its family members. This move came after Trump had repeatedly criticized Merchan and his daughter on Truth Social, a social media platform Trump had launched following his ban from mainstream platforms. The developments in the ongoing hush money case and the broader legal challenges facing Trump underscore the complex legal battles he continues to face as he navigates multiple criminal investigations and lawsuits.
As Trump’s legal team grapples with the denial of his motion to delay the criminal trial and awaits the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity, the former president remains entangled in a web of legal challenges that have followed him since leaving office. The outcome of these legal battles will have significant implications for Trump’s future and could determine the extent of accountability he may face for alleged wrongdoing during his time in office. While the road ahead remains uncertain, one thing is clear: the legal troubles for Donald Trump are far from over.
