Trump to be sentenced in New York criminal trial

Trump called the case and his sentencing a "tremendous setback for the American court system." 

"This is a great embarrassment to the state of New York," Trump said, adding that the people saw the trial firsthand, and voted "decisively" to elect him as president. 

Judge Juan Merchan set Jan. 10-just ten days before he is set to be sworn in as the 47th President of the United States. 

Merchan, though, said he will not sentence the president-elect to prison. 

Merchan wrote in his decision that he is not likely to "impose any sentence of incarceration," but rather a sentence of an "unconditional discharge," which means there would be no punishment imposed. 

Trump filed an appeal to block sentencing from moving forward with the New York State Court of Appeals. That court rejected his request. 

Trump also filed an emergency motion with the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that it "immediately order a stay of pending criminal proceedings in the Supreme Court of New York County, New York, pending the final resolution of President Trump's interlocutory appeal raising questions of Presidential immunity, including in this Court if necessary." 

"The Court should also enter, if necessary, a temporary administrative stay while it considers this stay application," Trump's filing requested. 

Trump's attorneys also argued that New York prosecutors erroneously admitted extensive evidence relating to official presidential acts during trial, ignoring the high court's ruling on presidential immunity. 

The Supreme Court, earlier this year, ruled that presidents are immune from prosecution related to official presidential acts. 

But New York prosecutors argued that the high court "lacks jurisdiction" over the case. 

They also argued that the evidence they presented in the trial last year concerned "unofficial conduct that is not subject to any immunity." 

Trump was charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. He pleaded not guilty to those charges. After a six-week-long, unprecedented trial for a former president and presidential candidate, a New York jury found the now-president-elect guilty on all counts. 

Trump has maintained his innocence in the case and repeatedly railed against it as an example of "lawfare" promoted by Democrats in an effort to hurt his election efforts ahead of November.