Donald Trump was sentenced without penalty in the New York hush money case Friday after a symbolic – and historic and unprecedented – hearing following the first felony conviction of a former and soon-to-be sitting president.

Before Friday’s hearing, Merchan had indicated he planned the no-penalty sentence, called an unconditional discharge, which meant no jail time, no probation and no fines would be imposed.

President-elect Donald Trump, 78, told Judge Juan Merchan he is 'totally innocent' and did 'nothing wrong' as he was sentenced in New York in his hush money trial

President-elect Donald Trump received a historic sentence on Friday, Jan. 10, from New York Judge Juan Merchan, dodging jail time and instead getting 'unconditional discharge' for his 34 felony convic

Donald Trump's sentencing in his New York criminal case on Friday closes out a series of prosecutions that he largely beat by retaking the U.S. presidency, though he is still fighting to avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars for losses in civil lawsuits.

The punishment-free judgment marks a quiet end to an extraordinary case that for the first time put a former president and major presidential candidate in a courtroom as a criminal defendant.

President-elect Donald Trump was sentenced Jan. 10 to an unconditional discharge, in which a defendant isn’t fined, imprisoned or given probation. Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in May 2024.

Donald Trump was not punished for his criminal conviction in the Manhattan hush money case, bringing a lackluster end to the legal saga that will make him the country’s first felon-turned-president. At a sentencing hearing on Friday,