Former US President Donald Trump was acquitted without punishment on Friday in a New York criminal trial for falsifying business records and violating the election law. New York Judge Juan Merchan made it clear in the verdict that the office of the former president, found guilty of all 34 charges as a serious offender, is protected from a fine or prison sentence.
The verdict against Trump is linked to hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels worth $130,000. Trump was not charged for the payment itself, which is legal in the US. He is alleged to have disguised the payments, made by his former lawyer Michael Cohen on his behalf, as ordinary legal fees. In New York, falsifying records is a crime, except when it aims to conceal another crime.
Prosecutors suspected a conspiracy to support a political campaign with “illegitimate means” when Trump allegedly used the payments to support his presidential campaign in 2016, violating the election law.
His former lawyer implicated the presidential candidate in the trial, stating that Trump had instructed him to stop reports of his affairs. The former president did not testify in the trial, and his defense attempted to portray Cohen as a liar.
Trump was ultimately found guilty by the 12 jurors in all 34 charges. It was the first time a former president was found guilty in a criminal trial.
Before the verdict on the sentence was announced, the judge had hinted that Trump would not face imprisonment, citing the Supreme Court’s immunity decision, which was made by a Republican-dominated court. The judge argued that a unconditional acquittal seemed “the most practical solution” to ensure the finality of the verdict and give the defendant the opportunity to exercise his appeal options.