A federal judge has once again rejected Donald Trump’s attempt to move his New York hush money criminal case, which led to his conviction, to federal court. Judge Alvin Hellerstein’s ruling, the third such denial, stated Trump waited too long and that the alleged actions were not covered by presidential immunity. Trump’s legal team has already filed an appeal, asserting the decision contradicts prior judicial orders and legal precedents.
In a significant legal blow to former President Donald Trump, a federal judge has once again rejected his attempt to transfer the New York state criminal hush money case, which culminated in his conviction, to federal court. This marks the third time Judge Alvin Hellerstein has denied Trump’s plea to have his criminal proceedings handled by the U.S. District Court in Manhattan.
The federal appeals court had previously instructed Judge Hellerstein to re-evaluate his most recent denial, particularly in light of a July 1, 2024, U.S. Supreme Court decision. That ruling, stemming from a separate federal criminal case involving Trump, established presumptive immunity for presidents regarding their official acts, while explicitly stating that "there is no immunity for unofficial acts."
However, in his Friday ruling, Hellerstein concluded that Trump had waited too long to seek the case's removal to federal court, acting only after his May 2024 conviction and the subsequent Supreme Court decision.
Promptly following Hellerstein’s decision, Trump’s legal team filed a notice of appeal, indicating they will challenge the ruling before the 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
Trump’s conviction involved 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in Manhattan state Supreme Court. These charges were connected to a hush money payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels to silence her claims of an affair before the 2016 election. Trump has consistently denied Daniels' allegations and was reportedly sentenced in January 2025 to an unconditional discharge, just prior to hypothetically beginning a second nonconsecutive term in the White House.
US President Donald Trump speaks after signing an executive order that aims to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on Aug. 27, 2026.
Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images
The former president's pursuit of removal to federal court was part of a broader strategy aimed at overturning his conviction. His lawyers contended that evidence introduced during the trial, which included conversations and observations involving presidential aides, should have been excluded because it pertained to official conduct.
Judge Hellerstein, however, unequivocally stated, "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."
This ruling marks the latest in a series of legal setbacks for Donald Trump personally since 2025. In July, another Manhattan federal court judge ordered the release of approximately $5.8 million to writer E. Jean Carroll, satisfying a civil trial verdict that found Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming her. Earlier in April, a federal appeals court declined to reconsider a decision upholding an additional $83.3 million civil judgment in Carroll's favor for defamation. Furthermore, in April, a federal judge dismissed Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch, though allowing him to amend his civil complaint.
Hellerstein further elaborated in his Friday ruling that Trump possessed no legal grounds to remove the case from state court after already being convicted and sentenced. He asserted, "He cannot play one court against another; he 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 judge also noted that the evidence presented at trial did not infringe upon presidential immunity, and Trump failed to demonstrate that he was prosecuted by the Manhattan district attorney's office for conduct related to his presidency. Hellerstein firmly concluded, "Paying hush money to an adult film star or engaging in a cover-up of an embarrassment are not subsumed in presidential immunity."
Separately, Trump is also appealing his conviction through the New York state appeals court system.
In a statement reacting to Hellerstein's ruling, a spokesperson for Trump's legal team declared, "The Supreme Court's historic decision on Immunity, the Federal and New York State Constitutions, and other established legal precedent mandate that the Witch Hunt perpetrated by the Manhattan DA be removed to federal court, and immediately overturned and dismissed." The spokesman also claimed that "President Trump has already prevailed in this case at the Second Circuit Court of Appeals," referring to that court's prior directive for Hellerstein to reconsider the transfer request. They concluded by stating, "And today's baseless and lawless decision contradicts that correct ruling. President Trump will be filing a powerful appeal, and will continue defeating Democrat weaponization at every turn."
