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Anna Betts
Outside 100 centre street this morning, a group of around 20 anti-Trump protesters have gathered.
They are holding signs reading “Trump is guilty”, “fraud” and “34 felony convictions”, among others.
On the other side of the court building, there are three people holding a banner in support of Trump. It reads, “Stop partisan conspiracy”, “Stop political witch hunts”, “Stop DEM kangaroo court” and “Free trump Save America”.
Standing on the street are around 20 or so police officers, and barricades have been set up to separate the anti-Trump and pro-Trump protesters.
Victoria Bekiempis
The courthouse at 100 Centre Street in downtown Manhattan was busy with reporters hours before Donald Trump’s sentencing in his criminal hush money case.
Aside from queuing up in the cold outside, and the din of colleagues catching up with one another, there was little else of note. By the time we were ushered into the building around 8am, this reporter hadn’t seen any protesters or spectators gathered at the park across from court. We’re inside now, but waiting in line outside the courtroom.
US supreme court to hear arguments over law that could lead to TikTok ban
Another big story to watch today is oral arguments before the supreme court over a recently passed law that requires TikTok’s China-based owner to sell its US operations by 19 January, or face a ban.
Republicans and Democrats alike worry the hugely popular social media app poses a national security threat over its owners’ ties to Beijing, the potential that it could be used to harvest data from Americans. Though Congress moved to pass the sell-or-ban law last year, Donald Trump now says he wants to keep TikTok available.
The ban may go into effect just before he is inaugurated, though supreme court could decide to put a stop to that. We’ll find out more when oral arguments commence at 10am. Here’s more on the case:
Donald Trump responded to the US supreme court’s rejection of his bid to delay his sentencing in a press conference with reporters on Thursday evening.
He called the sentencing a “disgrace” and said the judge presiding over the case, Juan Merchan “shouldn’t have been on the case”. He went on to call the supreme court’s ruling “fair”.
He added: “I’ll do my little thing tomorrow. They can have fun with their political opponent.”
Reuters has written up a brief overview of the hush-money case:
Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, charged Donald Trump in March 2023 with illegally falsifying business records to cover up an alleged affair with the pornographic film actor Stormy Daniels. A jury convicted him of 34 felony counts in May 2024. The judge overseeing the case indicated he does not plan to send Trump to prison. But by granting an unconditional discharge, he would place a judgment of guilt on Trump’s permanent record.
Trump has denied wrongdoing and has vowed to appeal. The conviction could be thrown out by an appeals court even after he is sentenced.
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Donald Trump’s sentencing in his New York hush-money trial.
Trump is due to officially assume to presidency in 10 days. He is the first US president – former or sitting – to face a criminal trial, let alone a guilty verdict and subsequent sentencing.
Despite being convicted on 34 felony charges, the judge presiding over the case, Juan Merchan, has strongly implied that the incoming president will not face any meaningful consequences.
Merchan has said that the most viable sentence seems to be “unconditional discharge”, which in New York means that the conviction holds, but a defendant will be released “without imprisonment, fine or probation supervision”.
Trump launched a last-minute bid to halt his sentencing after Merchan announced it would be going ahead last week but his appeals were rejected by the US supreme court.
On Thursday evening, Trump told reporters that the case was a “disgrace” but appeared to back the supreme court, calling their ruling a “fair decision, actually.”
The sentencing is due to take place at 9:30am ET (14:30pm UK time). Follow here for the latest updates.
