A New York judge on Thursday denied Donald Trump’s request to dismiss criminal charges stemming from hush money paid to a porn star, paving the way for the first-ever criminal trial of a former US President.
Justice Juan Merchan set a trial date of March 25 for the case, one of four criminal prosecutions Trump faces as he pursues the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic President Joe Biden in the November 5 US election.
Trump, 77, had asked Merchan to toss the 34-count indictment, which charges him with falsifying business records to cover up the $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election.
But Merchan took less than 10 minutes to deny his request and confirm the March 25 start date.
Ahead of the hearing, Trump repeated his claims that the case is politically motivated.
“They wouldn’t have brought this except for the fact — no way — except for the fact that I’m running for President and doing well,” Trump said in a hallway outside the courtroom. The trial is set to start before the three other criminal cases Trump faces.
Trump may have effectively wrapped up the Republican nomination by that point. He has won the first four state nominating contests and opinion polls show him with a wide lead over Nikki Haley. Trump has used his frequent court dates to help raise money for his presidential campaign.
