After being found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records in a hush money payment scheme, former President Donald Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11, just four days before the start of the Republican National Convention.
If Trump is sentenced to prison, it will likely cast a pall over the convention, where he will officially become the GOP presidential nominee in 2024.
Both the guilty verdict and the sentencing arrangement are an unprecedented moment in American politics. Never before has a former president been convicted of criminal charges with the possibility of jail time.
TRUMP GUILTY IN MANHATTAN HUSH MONEY CASE
It is unclear how the GOP convention would proceed if Trump were directed to head to jail. But Trump is already gearing up to appeal the conviction in the meantime.
The former president has also begun to fundraise off of the conviction. “BREAKING NEWS: I’M A POLITICAL PRISONER!” stated a fundraising email.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged Trump last year for directing illegal payments to silence porn star Stormy Daniels from detailing an alleged affair during his 2016 presidential campaign.
On Thursday, a 12-member jury convicted Trump after more than 11 hours of deliberation.
Trump quickly trashed the verdict, calling the trial “rigged” and a “disgrace.”
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“The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people and they know what happened here,” Trump added. “I’m a very innocent man. … I’m fighting for our country. I’m fighting for our Constitution.”
The former president faces three other criminal cases from last year but it is unclear whether any will be tried before the November election.
