Summary (tl;dr)

A federal judge has once again rejected President Donald Trump's attempt to transfer his New York hush money criminal conviction to federal court, ruling that the payments to an adult film actress were not "official acts" covered by presidential immunity. This decision is a setback for Trump's ongoing legal efforts to overturn his felony conviction.

Essential Background

In May 2024, Donald Trump was convicted in a New York state court on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments made to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels. These payments were intended to conceal an alleged affair ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Trump, who was sentenced to an unconditional discharge in January 2025 (meaning no jail time or fine), has consistently denied the affair and wrongdoing, and has sought to overturn his conviction.

The Full Story

On Friday, August 28, 2026, U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein rejected President Donald Trump's third request to move his hush money case from New York state court to federal court. Judge Hellerstein found that Trump's arguments for removal were "neither new nor legally sufficient" and that his legal team had waited too long to make the request. Crucially, the judge explicitly stated that "discussions regarding hush money payments to cover up the President's relations with Stormy Daniels could not be an official act" and are therefore not protected by presidential immunity. This ruling came after the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had ordered Judge Hellerstein in November 2025 to reconsider his previous denial in light of a July 2024 Supreme Court decision regarding presidential immunity. Trump's legal team has called Hellerstein's decision "baseless and lawless" and immediately filed an appeal, arguing that the Supreme Court's immunity ruling mandates the case's transfer and dismissal.

Why It Matters

This decision is a significant legal setback for President Trump, as it prevents him from using a federal court pathway to potentially dismiss his conviction based on claims of presidential immunity. The ruling reinforces the stance that the hush money payments were personal conduct, not official acts of the presidency. The felony conviction remains on his record, and his legal team will now continue to pursue appeals in the New York state appellate court system. The ongoing legal battles surrounding this case continue to hold political and legal implications for a sitting U.S. president.

Geographic Location

• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Manhattan, New York County, New York, United States (where Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein issued his ruling)
• New York Supreme Court, Manhattan, New York County, New York, United States (where Donald Trump was tried, convicted, and sentenced in the hush money case)
• 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, New York, New York, United States (federal appeals court that previously ordered reconsideration and where Trump's legal team will appeal this latest ruling)