Judge Juan Merchan approved of Trump attorney Todd Blanche’s attendance at the interview, which is out of the ordinary, according to NBC and CNN. It’s also not customary for the interview to occur virtually, NBC reported.
Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, was found guilty after a weekslong trial in which prosecutors successfully argued that the former president covered up a 2016 hush money payment to hide an affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Merchan is set to sentence Trump on July 11, but it’s unclear if he will pass down probation, jail time or community service. The sentencing date is four days before the start of the Republican National Convention.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg brought the charges against Trump, which he denied. The case marks the first time a U.S. president has been convicted of a felony.
“President Trump and his legal team are already taking necessary steps to challenge and defeat the lawless Manhattan DA case,” Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a Saturday statement, according to CNN.
Trump faces three other criminal cases — one over the mishandling of classified documents, another over federal election interference and a third over election interference in Georgia.
