Federal Judge Rejects Trump’s Bid To Transfer Case To Federal Court

A federal judge ruled Tuesday that former President Donald Trump cannot transfer his New York criminal case to federal court.

Judge Alvin Hellerstein ruled against Trump’s argument of presidential immunity and ruled that the court did not have grounds to determine alleged bias. Trump was convicted in May of 34 accounts on falsifying business records, and Hellerstein ruled that “hush money” payments fall outside the scope of “executive authority.”

“Hush money paid to an adult actress is not related to a President’s official acts. It does not reflect in any way the color of the President’s official duties,” Hellerstein wrote, reaffirming a previous decision from July 2023.

“Nothing in the Supreme Court’s opinion affects my previous conclusion that the hush money payments were private, unofficial acts, outside the bounds of executive authority,” Hellerstein wrote.

Trump’s team filed to move the case to federal court on Aug. 29, citing the Supreme Court’s July ruling that presidents are immune from prosecution for “official acts” taken in office and noting that Judge Juan Merchan’s daughter worked