A federal judge in Manhattan has once again refused to transfer Donald Trump's hush-money case from state to federal court, dealing the US president another setback in his efforts to overturn his felony conviction. Judge Alvin Hellerstein of the US District Court in Manhattan ruled on Friday that Trump's arguments were "neither new nor legally sufficient," firmly rejecting the bid for the third time.
The conviction stems from a May 2024 jury verdict — reached while Trump was between presidential terms — that found him guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors argued that Trump had concealed a $130,000 payment made through his then-lawyer Michael Cohen to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who claimed she had a sexual encounter with Trump around the time of his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump has consistently denied both the affair and any wrongdoing. Because the falsification of records was allegedly carried out to unlawfully influence the 2016 election, it was elevated from a misdemeanour to a felony under New York law. Trump was later sentenced to an unconditional discharge — meaning his convictions stand on his record but he faces no jail time or financial penalty.
Trump's legal team had sought to move the case to federal court, where they hoped to have it dismissed on presidential immunity grounds, citing a landmark July 2024 Supreme Court ruling that gave presidents and former presidents "presumptive immunity" for actions considered "official acts." Hellerstein dismissed that argument directly, writing: "There is no way that discussions regarding hush money payments to cover up the President's relations with Stormy Daniels could be an official act. An affair, or a cover-up of an affair, is not within the 'outer perimeter' of the President's official responsibilities." He also criticised the Trump legal team's handling of the case, saying they had taken a "second bite at the apple" by first approaching the state trial court and only later seeking federal intervention — a sequence the judge described as a strategic choice with legal consequences.
Friday's ruling came after the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals had ordered Hellerstein last November to reconsider an earlier denial, finding he had not fully examined certain issues. The appeals court did not, however, instruct him on how to rule. Hellerstein also pushed back against suggestions from Trump's lawyers that his role was simply to certify the record for the appellate court. "Federal district courts are not certifying clerks," he wrote pointedly.
Trump's legal team announced an appeal within hours, calling the ruling "baseless and lawless" and vowing to continue fighting what they described as "Democrat weaponization." Trump is also challenging his conviction through the separate state court appellate process, which remains pending. The hush-money case was the only one of the four criminal indictments Trump faced in 2023 to reach trial; the other three — relating to alleged mishandling of classified documents and efforts to overturn the 2020 election — were dropped after Trump won the 2024 presidential election.