Trump Loses Third Bid to Erase Hush Money Conviction

Federal Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein rejected Trump’s third attempt to move his state court hush money case to federal court and dismiss it on presidential immunity grounds. Hellerstein ruled that Trump’s reasons for the renewed request were “neither new nor legally sufficient” and that Trump had “failed to show good cause and diligence.” This marks the judge’s third denial of Trump’s effort to seize the case from New York state court where he was tried and convicted.

Trump stands as the first former and current U.S. president convicted of a crime, found guilty in May 2024 of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal a $130,000 hush money payment to adult film actor Stormy Daniels. He was sentenced to an unconditional discharge, leaving his conviction intact without additional punishment. Trump has consistently denied Daniels’ account of a sexual encounter a decade prior that threatened his 2016 campaign.

Hellerstein determined that Trump’s legal team made deliberate strategic choices that undermined their federal court removal argument. After the Supreme Court’s July 2024 presidential immunity ruling, Trump’s lawyers first petitioned state judge Juan Merchan to overturn the verdict rather than immediately seeking removal to federal court. Hellerstein characterized this as seeking “two bites at the apple,” a legal maneuver courts disfavor, and noted that by waiting nearly two months to file for federal removal, Trump’s team forfeited remedies available through federal court and sentencing timing.

During February oral arguments, Hellerstein questioned Trump lawyer Jeffrey Wall’s assertion that the legal strategy was sound, noting Trump could have filed a simple notice of removal to federal court and avoided sentencing proceedings entirely. Wall argued the compressed timeline after the Supreme Court ruling justified the approach, but Hellerstein rejected this rationale, stating “you made a choice” and “you didn’t have to do that.” The judge concluded Trump’s delay constituted a “quintessential strategic decision” and that discovering it was ineffective did not establish legal cause for reconsideration.

Trump continues contesting his conviction through the state court appellate process, which remains pending. His efforts to overturn the verdict through federal intervention have now failed three times under Hellerstein’s jurisdiction, with a federal appeals court last year ordering reconsideration that ultimately reinforced the original dismissal reasoning.

(Source: https://abc13.com/story/president-donald-trump-loses-bid-erase-hush-money-conviction/19752439/)