On Friday, Judge Juan Merchan caused a stir when he ruled that he would, indeed, set the sentencing of President-elect Donald Trump ahead of his inauguration. Trump was found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records by a Manhattan jury in late May. Since then, there have been multiple post-trial motions and delays, with one of the lingering questions being whether/when Merchan would impose sentencing.
Now we know: Merchan intends to sentence Trump on Friday, January 10, ten days before his inauguration. However, Merchan has signaled he is not inclined to sentence Trump to incarceration.
“While this Court as a matter of law must not make any determination on sentencing prior to giving the parties and Defendant an opportunity to be heard, it seems proper at this juncture to make known the Court’s inclination to not impose any sentence of…
