Follow live updates and the latest news coverage as Trump attends his sentencing hearing with Judge Juan Merchan following jury conviction in his hush money case.

Justice Juan M. Merchan, an even-keeled jurist, has been in the president-elect’s cross-hairs for nearly two years.

President-elect Trump was spared any punishment for his hush money criminal conviction Friday when a New York judge sentenced him to an unconditional discharge, eschewing jail time while securing his status as the first person convicted of a felony to assume the presidency.

The charges related to payments Trump’s company made to a lawyer, Michael Cohen, to reimburse him for paying off porn actor Stormy Daniels during Trump’s 2016 Republican presidential campaign.

On Friday, a New York judge imposed a sentence that ensures Donald Trump will be the first convicted felon to enter the White House when he is sworn in as president on Jan. 20. It was a brief and relatively calm final encounter of Trump's relationship with Justice Juan Merchan over 21 months and featured accusations of political bias from the former and stern dressings-down from the latter.

Supporters and protesters share thoughts on Donald Trump's sentencing outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse in New York City on Jan. 10, 2025.

The judge in Donald Trump’s hush money case sentenced the president-elect to an “unconditional discharge.’’ His conviction stands, but with no more penalties.