A New York judge has delayed Donald Trump's sentencing for his conviction on criminal charges stemming from hush money paid to an adult film actress until 18 September, after the former US president asked for a chance to argue he should have been immune from prosecution.
The sentencing had previously been set for 11 July, just days before the Republican National Convention begins in Milwaukee on 15 July.
Mr Trump is expected to be his party's nominee to challenge Democratic President Joe Biden in the 5 November election.
Mr Trump faces an uphill battle getting the hush money conviction overturned, since much of the conduct at issue in the case predated his time in office.
Mr Trump's lawyers yesterday asked Justice Juan Merchan to allow them to argue his conviction in New York state court in Manhattan should be overturned due to the US Supreme Court's ruling on 1 July that presidents are entitled to immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts.
Prosecutors with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office said Mr Trump's argument was "without merit," but agreed to delay the sentencing to give Mr Trump the chance to make his case.
A Manhattan jury on 30 May found him guilty of falsifying business records to cover up his former lawyer Michael Cohen's $130,000 (€121,000) payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to stay quiet about an alleged 2006 sexual encounter until after the 2016 election, when Mr Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton.
Prosecutors said the payment was part of an illicit scheme to influence the election.
Mr Trump denies having had sex with Ms Daniels and has vowed to appeal the conviction after his sentencing.
In their letter to Justice Merchan, defence lawyers argued that prosecutors had presented evidence involving Mr Trump's official acts as president, including social media posts he made and conversations he had while in the White House.
Under the US Supreme Court's ruling, prosecutors cannot use evidence related to official actions to help prove criminal cases involving unofficial actions.
"This official-acts evidence should never have been put before the jury," lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove wrote.
Last year, Mr Trump made a similar argument as part of an unsuccessful push to move the hush money case to federal court.
In denying Mr Trump's request in July 2023, US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein wrote that the payment to Ms Daniels "was a purely personal item".
"Hush money paid to an adult film star is not related to a president's official acts," Mr Hellerstein wrote.
Mr Trump's lawyers appealed Hellerstein's decision, but later abandoned the effort.
US Supreme Court ruling a 'dangerous precedent' - Biden
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden has criticised the US Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity that was seen as a win for Mr Trump, calling it a dangerous precedent that did a disservice to the American people.
Mr Biden said the decision meant Mr Trump was highly unlikely to go on trial before the 5 November election for his role in seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
The US Supreme Court found that Mr Trump cannot be prosecuted for any actions that were within his constitutional powers as president, but can be for private acts, in a landmark ruling recognising for the first time any form of presidential immunity from prosecution.
"This nation was founded on the principle that there are no kings in America. Each, each of us is equal before the law. No one, no one is above the law. Not even the president of the United States," Mr Biden said.
With this decision, he said, "that fundamentally changed".
Mr Biden is running for re-election against Mr Trump and has been sharply critical of his rival's actions related to the 6 January 2021 raid on the US Capitol by Mr Trump's supporters, who believed Mr Trump's false claims that he had won the 2020 election.
"Now the man who sent that mob to the US Capitol is facing potential criminal conviction for what happened that day. The American people deserve to have an answer in the courts before the upcoming election," Mr Biden said, referring to Mr Trump being on trial for his role in spurring the riot.
Mr Biden said the public has a right to know what the results of that prosecution before the election in November.
"Now, because of today's decision, that is highly, highly unlikely. It's a terrible disservice to the people in this nation," he said.
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President Biden, 81, was making his first set of remarks at the White House since his shaky debate against Mr Trump last week led to calls for him to step aside as the Democratic Party's standard-bearer for the election.
After he stumbled over his words on the Atlanta debate stage, his remarks and comportment are being scrutinised for signs that he is up to the job of running for re-election and of governing the country for four more years.
