The New York judge presiding over Donald Trump’s hush money trial on Friday sentenced the president-elect to an “unconditional discharge,” meaning he is now a convicted felon under New York state law but faces no further penalties .

“This was a very terrible experience,” said a sullen Trump, speaking remotely from his home in Florida, when allowed to address the judge.

“It was done to tarnish my reputation so that I would lose the election,” he said. “I am completely innocent. I didn’t do anything wrong,” he claimed.

The conviction came just ten days before Trump is set to be sworn in as the country’s 47th president.

“Never before have such unique and remarkable circumstances been presented to this court,” Judge Juan Merchan said before handing down his sentence. “This was a truly extraordinary case.”

He cited the immunity and legal protections Trump will soon have as reasons for sentencing him with an unconditional discharge, which he described as “the only lawful punishment that allows the entry of a judgment of conviction without interfering with the highest office in the land.” designated.

“Donald Trump, the ordinary citizen, Donald Trump, the criminal defendant, would not be entitled to such significant protection,” Merchan said.

Trump’s lawyers had repeatedly tried to suspend the trial, which Merchan scheduled last week. Their appeals to Merchan, two state appeals courts and even the nation’s highest court were unsuccessful last week. Trump’s last hope, the U.S. Supreme Court, declined to block the proceedings late Thursday in a 5-4 ruling.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said in court that Trump had been convicted of 34 crimes punishable by one to four years in prison, but recommended that the judge impose “a sentence of unconditional release” given the unique circumstances of the case.

“We must respect the office of the president and be cognizant of the fact that this defendant will be sworn in as president in 10 days,” Steinglass said, while saying that throughout the case, Trump had behaved as if he was “above it Law”. , including his frequent verbal attacks on the judge, prosecutors and even their family members.

“This defendant has caused lasting damage to the public perception of the criminal justice system,” he said.

Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche countered that it was the Manhattan district attorney’s office that went too far in the case. He said that Steinglass’ position assumes that “this case is legally appropriate and the charges brought by the people are consistent with New York law.” Again, we completely disagree.”

“This is a case that was undoubtedly brought by a district attorney who promised that he would take action against President Trump if elected, and he had to keep that promise,” Blanche said.

“It’s a very sad day. It is a sad day for President Trump, his family and his friends, but according to the lawyer, it is also a sad day for this country,” Blanche said, adding that Trump planned to appeal the case in full following the hearing Sentence has been entered.

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The conviction means Trump will make an ignominious history before becoming only the second president to be sworn in for two non-consecutive terms: he will be the only president convicted of criminal charges.

Trump hinted at the possibility of further appeals, such as attempting to appeal the ruling itself, in remarks to the media at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida on Thursday following the Supreme Court ruling.

“So I’ll do my little thing tomorrow. They can have fun with their political opponent,” he said.

The president-elect took to his social media platform Truth Social after Friday’s trial to tout the lenient sentence. “This result alone proves that, as all legal scholars and experts have said, there IS NO CASE, NEVER WAS A CASE, and that this entire fraud fully deserves to be dismissed.”

Merchan announced last week in a decision ordering the sentencing to proceed that he would most likely grant Trump an unconditional discharge under certain circumstances.

However, he criticized Trump both for the conduct that led to his conviction in May and for his behavior during and after the trial.

Last week, in his ruling, Merchan responded to Trump’s argument that the charges were not serious and should be dismissed, writing: “Twelve jurors unanimously found the defendant guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records with intent to defraud, including intent to defraud.” .” to commit or conceal a conspiracy to promote a presidential election by unlawful means. It was therefore a deliberate and continuous deception by the leader of the free world that was the gravamen of this crime.

“To overturn this verdict on the grounds that the charges are not serious enough given the position the defendant once held and will now assume again would represent a disproportionate result and do immeasurable harm to citizens’ trust in the rule of law,” wrote he .

He also took Trump to task for his attacks on the justice system.

“The defendant’s contempt for the third branch, whether state or federal, in New York or elsewhere, is public knowledge. “In fact, the defendant has gone to great lengths to express on social media and other forums his lack of respect for judges, jurors, grand jurors and the justice system as a whole,” Merchan wrote, saying he has repeatedly called out Trump for violating the law condemned for violating his partial duty of confidentiality in the case “despite repeated warnings”.

He noted that Trump continued to call the order “illegal” and “unconstitutional” even though it was “challenged and upheld no less than eight times by the First Department of the Appellate Division and the New York Court of Appeals.”

“As the defendant must surely know, the same order was left intact by the Supreme Court of the United States on December 9, 2024. Yet the defendant continues to undermine his legitimacy in posts to his millions of followers,” Merchan wrote. The gag order expired after the verdict was announced under the terms of a Merchan order from last June.

In his ruling last week, the judge noted that prison was “authorized by the conviction,” but said it was also an alternative that even prosecutors “no longer view as a viable recommendation” given Trump’s impending inauguration. .

At an appeals court hearing this week to block the conviction, Blanche indicated he was skeptical that Merchan would grant Trump an unconditional dismissal, regardless of what he wrote in his order.

“I don’t know how anyone can give weight to that,” Blanche said.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told reporters Thursday: “We believe that the sanctity of the jury’s verdict must prevail and be upheld as part of the rule of law, but we also recognize and respect the institution of the presidency.” ”

Trump’s conviction was based on allegations that he falsified business records related to hush money that his former lawyer Michael Cohen gave to porn star Stormy Daniels in the final days of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Daniels testified that she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, which he denied.

The case was one of four criminal cases Trump faced in early 2024 and the only one that went to trial.

A state trial into Trump’s interference in the 2020 election in Georgia is on pause as Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis challenges an appeals court order that barred her and her office from the case last month.

The Justice Department dropped two federal cases brought by special counsel Jack Smith after Trump won the election, citing its legal counsel’s view that it should not prosecute a sitting president.