The US Supreme Court has sentenced President-elect Donald Trump guilty after rejecting his last-minute attempt to delay sentencing in the high-profile hush-money case. While the President-elect was issued an unconditional discharge, the conviction means a guilty verdict in Trump’s permanent record, making him the first person to be convicted of a felony to take charge as President.

Trump’s appeal, made just days before his January 20 inauguration, sought a stay on his sentencing, urging the court to consider whether he was entitled to an automatic postponement. However, Supreme Court’s rejection set the stage for Trump to face the consequences of his actions regarding the $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, which he attempted to conceal during the 2016 presidential election.

Trump, who was found guilty of falsifying business records to cover up the reimbursement for Daniels’ silence, had hoped for a delay until after he assumed office. However, the Supreme Court ruled against him, upholding the legal process that had been set in motion following his conviction in May 2023. 

Despite this, Manhattan Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing the case, already indicated before the January 10 hearing that he will not consider jail time for the 78-year-old Trump, due to his lack of a criminal history and advanced age. Instead, he had hinted at an unconditional discharge, marking Trump’s permanent record with a guilty verdict.

The hush-money case revolves around Trumps alleged attempt to influence the 2016 election by silencing Daniels, who claimed to have had a sexual encounter with Trump, which he denied. The payment was made through Trumps former lawyer, Michael Cohen, who has since cooperated with investigators. Trump faced 34 counts of falsifying business records, with a Manhattan jury finding him guilty on all counts.

Although the charge carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison, legal experts had suggested that Trump would most likely avoid incarceration, particularly given his health and his re-election. However, his history of legal challenges, including violations of gag orders, added a layer of unpredictability to the case. Ultimately, a jail sentence or probation became increasingly impractical as Trump moved toward his second presidential inauguration, with his legal team fighting tirelessly to avoid the spectacle of him appearing in court so close to his return to office.

The case, while widely regarded as less serious than the other criminal cases Trump faces, nonetheless casts a shadow over his political career. It was the only one of Trumps four criminal cases to reach trial, and it drew significant attention as his legal team fought every step of the way to prevent the case from going forward. The other ongoing cases, involving accusations of attempting to overturn the 2020 election results and mishandling classified documents, are still in progress, but federal prosecutors had opted to refrain from pursuing charges against a sitting president.