Trump's sentence of an unconditional discharge caps a norm-smashing case that saw the former and future president charged with 34 felonies, put on trial for almost two months and convicted on every count. Yet, the legal detour didn't hurt him with voters, who elected him to a second term.
Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchan could have sentenced the 78-year-old Republican to up to four years in prison. Instead, he chose a sentence that sidestepped thorny constitutional issues by effectively ending the case but assured that Trump will become the first person convicted of a felony to assume the presidency.
Trump said his criminal trial and conviction has "been a very terrible experience" and insisted he committed no crime as he appeared on a video feed from his Florida club 10 days before he is inaugurated.
"It's been a political witch hunt. It was done to damage my reputation so that I would lose the election, and obviously, that didn't work," Trump said.
Trump, seated in a dark suit, appeared on a video screen in the courtroom with one of his lawyers at his side, as he called the case "a weaponization of government" and "an embarrassment to New York."
