Trump to be sentenced for conviction in New York "hush money" case before inauguration

Before President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House he will return to the courthouse, a New York judge ruled Friday.

Justice Juan Merchan will sentence Trump for his crimes on Jan. 10 — just 10 days before his inauguration on Jan. 20 — in a court proceeding that will be unlike any in America's 248 years. Trump's conviction in New York stemmed from a $130,000 so-called "hush money" payment his then-attorney, Michael Cohen, made to adult film star Stormy Daniels in the days before the 2016 election. 

Justice Juan Merchan's ruling ends two months of speculation — and back and forth jockeying by Trump's attorneys and prosecutors for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg — following Trump's narrow election victory on Nov. 5.