Former federal prosecutor Andrew Cherkasky commented on Friday that Judge Juan Merchan’s decision to postpone former President Donald Trump’s sentencing might suggest an intention to jail Trump after the November election.
Trump’s sentencing, originally scheduled for September 18, was delayed by Merchan to November 26 “if necessary,” according to the order.
On “America Reports,” Cherkasky speculated that Merchan may have delayed the sentencing because imprisoning Trump before the election could have significant repercussions, making it more feasible to address the matter after the election.
“[George Washington University law professor] Jonathan Turley was just explaining, perhaps this is a path to him finding or reaching a decision that does not have jail time for Donald Trump. I think it could be a signal of the opposite, that trying to jail the president ahead of the election would have been disastrous for the nation at large,” Cherkasky said. “But if he waits until after the election, then that becomes more of a viable option for him. I’m not saying I think that’s necessarily going to happen. I’m kind of playing it from both sides of the deck, thinking about what he might be thinking in terms of a final sentence in this case.”
The former federal prosecutor also noted that “there is good precedent that says that states can’t” impose criminal prosecution against a sitting president.
Former Federal Prosecutor Says Judge Delaying Sentencing May 'Signal' He Plans To Jail Trump 'After The Election' pic.twitter.com/kXbBQ1J3UY
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) September 6, 2024
“Does Judge Merchan see … a late November sentencing date as an opportunity to issue a sentence, essentially putting some sort of punishment on the former president ahead of the inauguration? Because obviously, during the time between the election and inauguration, he’s not actually the president,” he added. “So perhaps he tries to do something dramatic in those few weeks in between. There’s really no saying exactly what he’s thinking, other than to say right now it is on pause, and that’s assuming we actually get to sentencing. There’s a lot of issues that need to go up through the appellate system before we even get to that sentencing.”
In August, Trump’s attorneys requested Judge Merchan to delay the sentencing to allow Trump to “pursue state and federal appellate options” if the judge rejected their motion to dismiss the jury’s verdict based on the Supreme Court’s July ruling on presidential immunity.
'A Lot Of Work To Do': Jonathan Turley Reacts To Merchan Delaying Trump Sentencing Until After Election pic.twitter.com/3ignPOrgut
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) September 6, 2024
A Manhattan jury convicted Trump in May on 34 counts for falsifying business documents related to reimbursing his then-attorney for a nondisclosure agreement with porn star Stormy Daniels. Merchan postponed the original sentencing date of July 11 following the Supreme Court’s ruling.
