The Daily Fuckup

Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday to pause Friday’s sentencing in his New York hush-money case, after lower courts declined to push the date back. The filing landed two days before the hearing and sent the dispute to Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who handles emergency matters from New York. ([supremecourt.gov](https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/24a666.html))

The request is a late effort to stop the final step in a case that already produced a felony conviction. Trump was found guilty last year on 34 counts of falsifying business records. The sentencing hearing is set for Jan. 10, 2025. In its order denying the stay, the Supreme Court said the trial court planned to impose an “unconditional discharge” after a brief virtual hearing, meaning no jail, probation, or fine. ([supremecourt.gov](https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/24a666.html))

Trump’s lawyers argued that the sentencing should be delayed while he prepares to return to the White House. The Supreme Court docket shows the application was filed Jan. 8 and denied the next day. The court said the claims raised in the application could be handled in the ordinary course on appeal. ([supremecourt.gov](https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/24a666.html))

The case has been moving through the New York courts since the verdict. The state court’s public case page lists the sentencing for Jan. 10, 2025, alongside earlier post-trial filings and orders. That left Trump facing a scheduled sentencing while also trying to slow the process in federal court. ([ww2.nycourts.gov](https://ww2.nycourts.gov/people-v-donald-j-trump-criminal-37026))

The practical result was a narrow one: no immediate change in the state court schedule on Wednesday, and a public record showing Trump had asked the nation’s highest court to intervene in a criminal case that had already ended in conviction. The Supreme Court later turned him down, leaving the sentencing to go forward as planned. ([supremecourt.gov](https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/24a666.html))