(NewsNation) — Former President Donald Trump, now also a convicted felon, is set to hold a new conference in front of Trump Tower in New York following the unprecedented verdict in his trial.
The jury reached the verdict Thursday after nearly 12 hours of deliberation over two days, alerting Judge Juan Merchan to their decision just before they were set to be dismissed for the day. Trump’s sentencing has been set for July 11, where he could face up to 20 years in jail or be given a lighter sentence, with options including fines, probation, home detention and community service.
Trump railed against the verdict immediately after exiting the Manhattan courthouse where the trial had been held, calling it a political witch hunt and blaming President Joe Biden for the case. His campaign sent out fundraising emails after the verdict, raising $34.8 million, an amount the campaign said was almost double the biggest day of donations recorded.
His attorneys are almost certain to file an appeal in the case and are also likely to ask the court to stay any sentence until the appeals process is finished.
The criminal case was the first of four against Trump to go to trial and may be the only one to be decided before the election in November. The case centered around hush money payments made to Playboy model Karen McDougal and adult film star Stormy Daniels who said they had affairs with Trump and were paid to stay quiet ahead of the 2016 election. Trump then allegedly paid his former attorney and fixer Michael Cohen back for the payments.
Trump was charged with 34 counts related to falsifying business records to conceal damaging information from voters ahead of the election. Cohen previously pleaded guilty to violating campaign finance laws for orchestrating or making the hush money payments.
Trump’s conviction does not prohibit him from running for or holding office. Depending on how things play out, however, it may prevent him from being able to vote for himself in November.
