Donald Trump's Lawyers Claim Hush Money Case Should Be Thrown Out as President-Elect Is 'Completely Immune' After 2024 Election Win

Donald Trump's legal team has called for the "immediate dismissal" of the president-elect's hush money case following his 2024 election win.

In March 2023, Trump, 78, was charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business documents. The charges were in connection with a payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 election to keep her from speaking about an alleged sexual encounter she claims occurred between them in 2006.

Trump denied the affair and pleaded not guilty to all charges, but in May 2024, a jury ruled he was guilty on all 34 counts. However, due to the proximity of the presidential election, the judge made the decision to postpone his sentencing hearing until after the votes were counted.

Now, Trump's lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove have cited the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 in their statement sent to Judge Juan Merchan, which was published on Wednesday, November 20.

They demanded the case be tossed "in order to facilitate the orderly transition of Executive power following President Trump’s overwhelming victory in the 2024 Presidential election."

The attorneys claimed the Constitution forbids "plac[ing] into the hands of a single prosecutor and grand jury the practical power to interfere with the ability of a popularly elected President to carry out his constitutional functions ... Just as a sitting President is completely immune from any criminal process, so too is President Trump as President-elect."

Blanche and Bove requested they have until December 20 to file an official motion explaining why the case should be dismissed. However, this makes it unlikely that — should Judge Merchan choose to move forward with the case — a sentencing hearing would take place before he takes office in January 2025.

Amid the crunch for time, prosecutors from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office agreed they would not object to the sentencing hearing being postponed due to Trump's official duties.

"The People deeply respect the Office of the President, are mindful of the demands and obligations of the presidency, and acknowledge that Defendant’s inauguration will raise unprecedented legal questions," their statement read. "We also deeply respect the fundamental role of the jury in our constitutional system."

The prosecutors further acknowledged the need to "balance competing constitutional interests," and said "consideration must be given" to postponing the case until he's out of office again.