Trump's request for delay rejected

Judge Juan M. Merchan, who is presiding over Trump's case in New York, rejected the former President's request for a delay based on the claim that he is immune from criminal prosecution, stating that the hearings scheduled to begin in Manhattan on April 15 will not be postponed.

Finding the proposal, which Trump saw as a last resort for a delay, to be "untimely," Merchan effectively removed one of the final obstacles to the former American President standing trial for the first time.

This decision by Merchan paves the way for Trump to appear before a jury in the case, even though the US Supreme Court has not yet ruled on his immunity claim regarding election interference in Washington.

Trump had asked the judge to postpone the hearing until the Supreme Court issues a decision on whether he has immunity from prosecution for charges related to his official actions during his presidency, as part of another criminal case against him.

INDICTED BY A GRAND JURY

US President Trump was indicted by a grand jury on March 18, 2023, by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office as part of an investigation into the illegal "hush money" payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential election.

Trump appeared before a judge in New York on April 4, 2023, on charges of "hush money" and falsifying related records.

Denying the 34 separate charges brought against him, Trump described the allegations as a "political witch hunt" and stated that he viewed the charges as "election interference."

Trump went down in history as the "first former president to appear before a judge due to charges brought against him in American history."

Trump's lawyer, Todd Blanche, requested the dismissal of the criminal case in a petition submitted to the court on October 4, 2023, describing it as a "mixed bag of politically motivated charges."

The former President's lawyers also requested that the hearing be postponed for 90 days on the grounds that prosecutors had submitted "more than 100,000 pages" of documents to the court.

News Source: AA