Judge Rejects Trump’s Latest Bid to Erase Hush Money Conviction

Grounds for Rejection and Judicial Scrutiny

Judge Hellerstein reiterated his prior findings that the actions charged by Manhattan prosecutors involve private conduct. The judge wrote that discussions regarding hush money payments to cover up relationships bear no substantive relation to a federal office. “An affair, or a cover-up of an affair, is not within the “‘outer perimeter’ of the President’s official responsibilities,” Hellerstein stated in his ruling. The judge further noted that Trump failed to show good cause and diligence in bringing the renewed request.”

The latest federal court filing followed an order last November by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which instructed Hellerstein to reconsider his earlier denial in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s July 2024 presidential immunity ruling. That landmark decision established that presidents and ex-presidents can’t be prosecuted for official acts and barred prosecutors from using official acts as evidence that unofficial actions were illegal. During oral arguments in February, Hellerstein questioned Trump’s legal strategy, criticizing the defense for taking “two bites at the apple” after waiting roughly two months to file the renewed federal request.

Legal History and Defense Response

Trump was convicted in May 2024 of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. The charges stemmed from a $130,000 hush money payment made to adult film actor Stormy Daniels to suppress claims of an encounter that threatened his 2016 presidential campaign. Despite the guilty verdict, Trump was sentenced to an unconditional discharge, sparing him any punishment while leaving the conviction intact. This verdict made Trump the first former — and now current — U.S. president to be convicted of a crime.

Trump’s legal team immediately vowed to appeal Friday’s federal court decision. A spokesperson for the defense called Hellerstein’s ruling “baseless and lawless” in a statement reported by The Associated Press. “The Supreme Court’s historic decision on Immunity, the Federal and New York State Constitutions, and other established legal precedent mandate that the Witch Hunt perpetrated by the Manhattan DA be removed to federal court, and immediately overturned and dismissed,” the statement read. Alongside the federal proceedings, Trump continues to challenge his conviction through the ongoing New York state appellate court process.