President-elect Donald Trump‘s conviction in his hush money case remains in limbo as the judge continues to weigh whether or not to dismiss the guilty verdict. Could Trump be tried again if it’s tossed?
Judge Juan Merchan, overseeing Trump’s criminal case in New York, was expected to decide whether to uphold the conviction in light of the Supreme Court‘s immunity decision. However, after both sides requested more time to consider how to proceed in light of Trump’s recent victory, Merchan said he would postpone his decision until November 19.
Trump, who won the 2024 election in a major upset last week, was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in May. The case in New York, one of Trump’s four criminal cases, is the only one that has gone to trial. Legal analysts do not anticipate the other three cases moving forward now that Trump is returning to the White House.
But what remains ahead for the only successful case against the president-elect? And could Trump stand trial for the charges again if Merchan dismisses the current case entirely?
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Would There Be a Double Jeopardy Problem?
Former federal prosecutor and elected state attorney Michael McAuliffe told Newsweek that technically, Trump could be retried without implicating the double jeopardy clause since the statute would only be used if the conviction were overturned because of serious government misconduct.
The double jeopardy clause protects defendants from being prosecuted twice for the same crime. It prevents an individual from being tried again after a conviction or acquittal.
“There is no double jeopardy issue when a judge orders a mistrial because of inadmissible evidence,” former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani told Newsweek.
Knowing that the Supreme Court’s June decision on presidential immunity will be the basis for any upcoming decision, this will not likely prevent Trump from being tried on the charges again.
Could Trump Be Retried After His Second Term?
McAuliffe said the more likely barrier is “the fact the defendant will soon be the sitting president.”
“That fact will almost surely prevent or delay any further criminal proceedings until Trump again is no longer president,” he said.
“A sitting president can’t be prosecuted, and the statute of limitations may have run by the time Trump is out of office,” Rahmani said. “New York law allows the statute to toll while a criminal defendant is living out of the state, but I can’t see Alvin Bragg or another district attorney refiling this case again four years from now.”
So, if Merchan ultimately decides to dismiss Trump’s conviction, the case is effectively “over.”
