Donald Trump given unconditional discharge in New York hush-money case

US president-elect avoids jail time but will become first criminal to enter the White House

US president-elect Donald Trump appears remotely for a sentencing hearing before New York State Judge Juan Merchan. Reuters

Donald Trump was given an unconditional discharge in the sentencing for his New York hush-money conviction but will still enter the White House as a convicted felon – a first in the US.

An unconditional discharge in New York State law allows for a convicted person to be let go “without imprisonment, fine or probation supervision" in cases where "no proper purpose would be served by imposing any condition upon the defendant’s release".

But the discharge on Friday formalises the conviction.

New York Judge Juan Merchan said it was a "truly extraordinary case" before issuing the sentence to Mr Trump, who appeared in court via video link from Florida.

"This has been a very terrible experience and a set back for the New York court system," Mr Trump told the court, said news reporters who were in the courtroom. He also insisted on his innocence and challenged the basis of the case and work by judges.

A jury last May found Mr Trump guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business documents that covered up payments to people who claimed they had scandalous stories during his 2016 presidential campaign.

Stormy Daniels, an adult film performer, was paid $130,000 by Mr Trump's fixer in exchange for compliance in a non-disclosure agreement as part of the hush-money scheme at the centre of the case. Prosecutors argued that Mr Trump's attempts to hide the payments violated New York election law.

The scheme also included National Enquirer payments to former Playboy model Karen McDougal and a Trump property doorman on behalf of the Republican leader.

Mr Trump became the first US president to be convicted of a crime.

"The Radical Democrats have lost another pathetic, unAmerican Witch Hunt," he said in a Truth Social post after the sentencing.

He added that the unconditional release on the "baseless, illegal, and fake charges" was a loss for his opponents, but it was one he would appeal.

The Supreme Court, which has a conservative majority, rejected an emergency request to stay Friday's sentencing the night before the hearing. The justices ruled the sentencing was not a legal burden and Mr Trump can still appeal.

Falsifying business records carries a sentence of up to four years in prison, although jail time was unlikely given Mr Trump was a first-time offender. However, his gag order violations against Mr Merchan's orders did threaten jail time.

But with Mr Trump's electoral victory and his inauguration in 10 days, Mr Merchan viewed a jail sentence or probation as not "practicable".

The judge suggested in court that the sentencing may have been different if Mr Trump was an ordinary defendant, but "legal protections afforded to the office of the president" forced a legal mandate for the court to follow.

"Despite the extraordinary breadth of those protections, one power they do not provide is the power to erase jury verdicts,” Mr Merchan said.