Former President Donald Trump is attempting to delay the start of his New York trial over hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels until after the US Supreme Court rules on a separate case involving presidential immunity.
Trump, who has pleaded not guilty to 34 charges of falsifying business records in the case, is set to stand trial beginning on March 25. On Monday, the former president asked the judge presiding over the case to delay the trial until after the Supreme Court reviews the immunity claims he made in a different case.
Although Trump has not asserted presidential immunity in an attempt to have the charges against him thrown out, his legal team argued that presidential immunity should prevent prosecutors from including certain evidence during the trial.
"Therefore, President Trump respectfully submits that an adjournment of the trial is appropriate to await further guidance from the Supreme Court, which should facilitate the appropriate application of the presidential immunity doctrine in this case to the evidence the People intend to offer at trial," Trump's attorneys wrote in a motion, according to The Hill.
"The Court must preclude the People from offering evidence at trial of President Trump's official acts as the Commander in Chief, which the People have not yet specified as the existing trial date approaches," they added.
A spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg declined to comment on the motion.