Judge Delays Ruling on Whether to Throw Out Trump Hush Money Trial Charges — As Don's Very Controversial New Cabinet Is Unveiled
Nov. 12 2024, Published 6:30 p.m. ET
The judge overseeing Donald Trump's criminal hush money case has delayed his ruling on whether or not to dismiss the president-elect's conviction.
RadarOnline.com can reveal as Trump has been begun announcing his controversial cabinet member selections, the future of his New York criminal case remains in limbo.
While Trump's legal team has pushed for the case – in which he was found guilty on 34 felony counts of falsified business records – to be dismissed, prosecutors asked for more time to consider their next steps in the wake of Trump, 78, being elected president.
Prosecutor Matthew Colangelo wrote in a letter to Judge Juan Merchan: "The People agree that these are unprecedented circumstances and that the arguments raised by defense counsel in correspondence to the People on Friday require careful consideration to ensure that any further steps in this proceeding appropriately balance the competing interests of (1) a jury verdict of guilt following trial that has the presumption of regularity; and (2) the Office of the President.
"Accordingly, the People respectfully request that the Court adjourn the upcoming scheduled dates to afford the People time to assess these recent developments, and set November 19. 2024 as a deadline for the People to advise the Court regarding our view of appropriate steps."
On Tuesday, November 12, Merchan's clerk informed Trump's defense team and prosecutors a one week joint stay was granted by the court.
While the 78-year-old was initially scheduled to be sentenced on November 26, it now remains unclear whether Merchan will move forward with sentencing.
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said the results of the presidential election has made it "abundantly clear that Americans want an immediate end to the weaponization of our justice system, including this case, which should have never been filed."
Meanwhile, the president-elect appeared unbothered by the uncertain future of his criminal conviction as he continued the process of selecting Senate-confirmed cabinet members for his second term in the White House.
He recently announced campaign manager Susan Wiles would be tapped as his White House chief-of-staff, making her the first woman to hold the title.
Trump additionally chose Florida Rep. Mike Waltz as his national security adviser and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as his U.S. ambassador to Israel.
The president-elect has made it clear his selections will be based on those who have proven most loyal to him, which included South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who was selected to serve as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
Noem – who appeared beside then-candidate Trump during an awkward town hall in which the two swayed on stage to music for 45 minutes after he stopped taking questions – was once rumored to be in the running for vice president.
Those dreams came to a crashing halt though when she admitted to killing her 14-month-old puppy and a goat in her memoir. Amid backlash, Trump skipped over Noem and selected JD Vance as his running mate.
Still, Noem's loyalty to Trump appeared to pay off as she will now be in charge of border security and the president-elect's promise to deport millions of undocumented immigrants if she's confirmed by the Senate.
Other notable names in Trump's cabinet included Stephen Miller, who was appointed deputy chief of staff, as well as Tom Homan, who will serve as the "border czar".
Homan is a visiting fellow with The Heritage Foundation, the conservative think-tank responsible for Project 2025, which Trump repeatedly tried to distance himself from on the campaign trail.
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