Trump Seeks to Move Hush-Money Case to Federal Court, Claims Immunity

Trump’s lawyers cited the recent Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity; if the case is taken up in federal court, it could be on its way to the US Supreme Court.

“This ‘zombie’ case should have been dismissed a long time ago,” attorneys Todd Blanche and Emil Bove wrote in their 64-page filing in U.S. District Court.

The case, Blanche and Bove argue, could hurt Trump’s electoral chances in November.

“The ongoing proceedings will continue to cause direct and irreparable harm to President Trump — the front-runner in the 2024 presidential election — and voters far beyond Manhattan,” they wrote.

“And a completely unfair sentencing is currently scheduled for September 18, 2024, which could result in the immediate and unconstitutional incarceration of President Trump and prevent him from continuing his groundbreaking campaign,” the lawyers added.

A representative for the Manhattan district attorney’s office declined to comment when contacted by Business Insider.

Representatives for Trump and the US District Court did not immediately respond to BI’s requests for comment.

In May, a New York jury found Trump guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 election.

Trump is scheduled to be sentenced in the case on Sept. 18, but his legal motion Thursday, if granted, would delay sentencing.

Trump’s lawyers filed the request Thursday with Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who earlier this year denied Trump’s earlier motion to move the case to federal court.