On Friday, Justice Juan M. Merchan sentenced Donald J. Trump to an unconditional discharge, a rare and lenient sentence in New York state courts that still cements Mr. Trump’s status as a felon before his inauguration.
A conditional discharge would have required him to meet certain conditions, like maintaining employment or paying restitution, but Mr. Trump will not be subject to any requirements going forward.
The outcome was expected: Last week, in an 18-page decision, Justice Merchan said that he planned to give Mr. Trump an unconditional discharge, writing that it “appears to be the most viable solution to ensure finality.”
Mr. Trump, who was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal, had originally faced probation or up to four years in prison, and a New York Times analysis revealed that Justice Merchan had ample ground to consider incarceration.
Since 2014, a third of defendants sentenced to the most serious charge of falsifying business records in the first degree in Manhattan received jail time, amounting to less than a year behind bars.
Other defendants received prison time — more than a year’s incarceration — or were sentenced to probation, conditional discharges, community service or fines.
No other defendant in the cases examined received an unconditional discharge.
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