Trump hush money case: Lawyers ask judge to halt sentencing [Video]

NEW YORK –

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Monday moved to halt this week’s sentencing in his hush money case while he appeals a judge’s decision that upheld the historic verdict and put him on course to be the first president to take office convicted of felony crimes.

Trump’s lawyers said they will ask a New York appeals court to reverse Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchan’s ruling last week, which set the case for sentencing on Friday — a little more than a week before his inauguration.

• Sign up for breaking news alerts from CTV News, right at your fingertips
• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App

If sentencing proceeds as scheduled, Trump’s lawyers argued, he will be appealing the verdict while in office and will be “forced to deal with criminal proceedings for years to come.” They raised an improbable scenario in which, if …