In a decisive ruling on August 28, 2026, U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein denied President Donald Trump’s renewed attempt to move his New York hush-money case from state to federal court, dealing a significant blow to efforts to overturn his historic criminal conviction.
Judge Hellerstein, of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, ruled that President Trump’s arguments for the case transfer were “neither new nor legally sufficient” and that he had failed to demonstrate “good cause and diligence” for the request. The ruling marks the third time Judge Hellerstein has blocked President Trump’s effort to transfer the case from the New York state court where he was tried and convicted.
The ruling came after a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals directed Judge Hellerstein to more closely review how the Supreme Court’s July 2024 presidential immunity decision affected the New York case. The appellate court had instructed Hellerstein to examine whether disputed evidence in the trial related to official acts President Trump carried out in his White House capacity.
In his written order, Judge Hellerstein maintained his previous position that the case involved President Trump’s personal conduct, not official presidential acts. He stated: “The People’s prosecution arises from President Trump’s private conduct surrounding the reimbursement of hush money payments to an adult film star. That conduct, and the challenged evidence, bears no substantive relation to his position in federal office.”
Judge Hellerstein identified multiple reasons for rejecting the transfer request. He characterized the move as seeking a “‘second bite at the apple,’ a result the law disfavors.” The judge noted that Trump’s legal team made a critical strategic error by first asking the state trial judge to set aside the verdict on immunity grounds before seeking federal removal. This nearly two-month delay was described as a “quintessential strategic decision” that did not establish “good cause” for the late request.
The judge further stated: “He cannot play one court against another” and “cannot seek victory in one court, and then, when it becomes apparent that the court will rule against him, seek to remove his case to another court.”
The case originated from a May 2024 verdict in which President Trump was found guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. The charges stemmed from a $130,000 hush-money payment made to adult film actor Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign. The payment was made to silence Daniels about an alleged sexual encounter, which President Trump has consistently denied.
In January 2025, days before his second term began, Judge Juan Merchan sentenced President Trump to an unconditional discharge, meaning the conviction remained on his record but he received no jail time, fine, or probation. The sentence made Trump the first former and current U.S. president to be convicted of a crime.
President Trump’s legal team argued that the conviction should be overturned based on the Supreme Court’s July 2024 ruling that presidents are immune from prosecution for official acts. They contended that evidence used at trial, including testimony from former White House communications director Hope Hicks, was related to official duties and thus protected by presidential immunity.
Trump’s lawyers further argued that the case could be moved to federal court now based on “good cause” exceptions to standard removal timelines. They maintained that prosecutors rushed to trial instead of waiting for the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision.
This ruling represents a significant procedural victory for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, ensuring the case remains a state-level conviction. It reinforces the legal precedent that the Supreme Court’s immunity decision does not shield a president’s personal conduct from state-level prosecution.
Judge Hellerstein’s ruling explicitly rejected the application of presidential immunity to the hush money case, writing: “Paying hush money to an adult film star or engaging in a cover-up of an embarrassment are not subsumed in presidential immunity.” He further emphasized: “There is no way that discussions regarding hush money payments to cover up the President’s relations with Stormy Daniels could be an official act. An affair, or a cover-up of an affair, is not within the ‘outer perimeter’ of the President’s official responsibilities.”
President Trump’s legal team has already announced they will appeal Judge Hellerstein’s decision to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. This is the same appellate court that previously sent the case back to Hellerstein for reconsideration. Additionally, President Trump is continuing to challenge the conviction through the New York state court appellate process.
The federal appeal track would offer a faster route for the case to potentially reach the U.S. Supreme Court. However, for now, the conviction remains intact in New York state court, where an ongoing appeal is pending.
1. What did Judge Alvin Hellerstein decide in the Trump hush money case?
Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein denied President Trump’s request to move his New York hush-money conviction from state court to federal court, ruling that the arguments were “neither new nor legally sufficient.”
2. Why was Trump’s request to move the case to federal court rejected?
The judge ruled that Trump’s legal team waited too long to file the request after pursuing other legal options first. Most importantly, Hellerstein determined the case concerns personal conduct, not official presidential acts protected by immunity.
3. What was Trump’s hush-money conviction about?
In May 2024, Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a $130,000 payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election to conceal an alleged affair, which Trump has denied.
4. How many times has Judge Hellerstein rejected Trump’s transfer request?
This is the third time Judge Hellerstein has blocked Trump’s effort to transfer the case from New York state court to federal court.
5. What happens next in the Trump hush money case?
Trump’s legal team will appeal the decision to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The conviction is also being challenged through the New York state court system.
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