Prosecutors in New York are at a crucial juncture as they prepare to inform a judge whether the criminal hush money case against President-elect Donald Trump should proceed to sentencing or be dismissed entirely. This Manhattan Supreme Court case is one of four criminal prosecutions against the Republican, whose fate hangs in the balance due to his election victory against Vice President Kamala Harris. The hush money case specifically pertains to payments made by Trump's then-lawyer Michael Cohen to porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election.

Key Developments in the Case

In this courtroom sketch, former U.S. president Donald Trump appeared via video conferencing during a hearing before his trial on charges of falsifying business records to conceal money paid to silence Stormy Daniels in 2016. Prosecutors on Tuesday are set to make a significant decision regarding the case. If they believe the case should head to sentencing as planned, it would mark a different path for the prosecution. However, if they follow Trump's lawyers' request and dismiss the case following his electoral victory, it would have major implications.Trump was convicted in May in Manhattan Supreme Court on 34 felony charges related to the falsification of business records. These records were tied to a $130,000 payment made by his then-personal lawyer Michael Cohen to Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 election to buy her silence about a purported one-time sexual encounter with Trump a decade earlier. Judge Juan Merchan had been expected to rule on a dismissal request by Trump's lawyers as early as November 12, but the Manhattan District Attorney's Office opposed the request. After Trump's election win, the DA's office asked Merchan to delay his ruling to assess the impact of the victory on the case, and Merchan granted them one week to do so.Before the ordered pause, Trump was scheduled to be sentenced on November 26. If the case is not dismissed and he is sentenced, it is not expected that he will serve any potential jail sentence until after he leaves the White House more than four years from now. Two criminal cases against Trump in federal court are expected to be dismissed before he enters the White House or shortly afterward, as he has the power to order his attorney general to drop those cases. The Department of Justice, which the attorney general leads, also has a policy of not prosecuting sitting presidents.In one of the federal cases, Trump is charged in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., with crimes related to his attempt to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden. The judge there was considering the effect of the July ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on the case before special counsel Jack Smith asked her to pause all proceedings after Trump's election. Smith also asked a federal appeals court in Atlanta to pause proceedings in his attempt to reverse the dismissal by Florida federal district court Judge Aileen Cannon of charges against Trump related to his retention of classified government records after leaving the White House. The appeals court granted the delay, which was seen as a precursor to the DOJ dropping the case altogether.In a fourth criminal case in Atlanta state court, Trump and more than a dozen co-defendants are charged with crimes in connection with their attempt to reverse his 2020 defeat by Biden in Georgia. Trump and some of the other defendants are appealing the trial court's decision to allow Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to remain on the case despite her having a romantic relationship with a top prosecutor assigned to the matter. On Monday, the Georgia Court of Appeals, without explanation, canceled oral arguments until further notice in Trump's appeal, which was scheduled for December 5.