The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s New York criminal trial approved a delay in his sentencing on Tuesday following the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling as Trump’s lawyers seek a new trial.
The sentencing hearing, previously scheduled for July 11, will now take place on September 18, according to the court’s docket.
The delay guarantees Trump will not be sentenced until after he is officially nominated for president at the Republican National Convention, which begins July 15.
Trump’s legal team sent a letter to Juan Merchan asking how the ruling impacts his felony conviction on 34 counts of falsified business records.
Prosecutors argued Trump doctored his internal business records while serving in the White House to hide he ordered his former lawyer Michael Cohen to pay off adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
Trump’s team argued that prosecutors wrongly used evidence of his “official acts” at trial, which he is now immune from that conduct and prohibited under the Supreme Court’s new decision.
Merchan approved the delay on Tuesday in a letter to both Trump’s legal team and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Some of the evidence that comes into question with the new ruling includes former aide Hope Hicks describing a conservation she had with Trump while he was president, is off limits.
Trump faces several options for his sentencing, including prison time, probation and a fine.
