Trump asks SCOTUS to delay sentencing for business fraud

President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to delay a sentencing hearing set for Friday. At the scheduled hearing, Acting New York State Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan would determine Trump’s sentence for his New York criminal conviction on charges of falsifying business records. Merchan indicated last week he likely wouldn’t sentence Trump to jail.

Why is Trump appealing to the Supreme Court? Trump has failed to obtain a delay of the sentencing, or a dismissal of the verdict, in lower courts. On Monday, Merchan denied a request by Trump to delay his sentencing hearing as Trump appealed his conviction. The next day, a New York appeals court judge also denied a similar request from Trump. The president-elect has denied wrongdoing and asked Merchan to dismiss both the indictment and jury verdict against him. He argues the trial featured evidence that the U.S. Supreme Court determined last year could not be used against him in a criminal trial.

What exactly is Trump asking the Supreme Court for?

• Trump asked the high court to decide whether he could be sentenced while appeals court judges review his presidential immunity claims.

• He also asked the court whether his criminal immunity as president prohibited state prosecutors from using evidence from his official acts as president against him in a state court’s jury trial.

• Trump also asked the high court to determine whether presidential immunity extended to presidents-elect after their election victory was certified but before they were sworn in.

Dig deeper: Read about how a federal judge in Florida yesterday temporarily blocked the U.S. Department of Justice from releasing a report about its investigations into Trump.