President-elect Donald Trump was sentenced Friday to no punishment in his historic hush money case, a judgment that lets him return to the White House unencumbered by the threat of a jail term or a fine.

Judge Juan Merchan sentenced Trump on Friday to no jail time, probation, or fines after he was convicted by a jury of falsifying business records.

Justice Juan Merchan’s sentence of unconditional discharge for Trump carries no jail time, probation or fines. Trump had faced up to four years in prison.

The criminal case brought against Trump by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg began trial proceedings last April. After juggling courtroom visits in multiple legal cases with campaign rallies, Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts against him by a New York jury on May 30, 2024.

President-elect Donald Trump spoke for six minutes. The judge talked for seven. In the end, the first criminal court sentencing of a former or future president took little more than half an hour.

President-elect Donald Trump will enter the White House this month as a felon, but will serve no jail time under a sentence handed down this morning in New York for his criminal conviction in a hush-money trial that angered him and his supporters but didn’t prevent him from reclaiming the presidency.

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.