A federal judge has rejected former President Trump’s request to intervene in his New York criminal case. Trump’s lawyers were hoping to move the case to federal court so they could try to have his conviction overturned in the wake of the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling.
Manhattan Judge Alvin Hellerstein said Trump’s conviction for falsifying business records involved his personal life, not official actions the Supreme Court ruled are immune from prosecution.
“Nothing in the Supreme Court’s opinion affects my previous conclusion that the hush money payments were private, unofficial acts, outside the bounds of executive authority,” Hellerstein wrote.
The Republican presidential nominee was found guilty on 34 separate felony counts of falsifying business records in May. Sentencing for the case is set for Sept. 18.
