Next up for Trump after verdict: a multitude of options for appeals and sentencing

Following the conviction of former President Donald Trump in the New York hush money trial, multiple legal experts explained the various possibilities of sentencing and appeal routes that could occur in the upcoming months.

With Trump’s sentencing over a month away, several legal experts weighed in on the sentence that Trump may receive and how his appeals process could unfold. While the experts believes that Trump will win on appeal, they said it won’t be before the election, and that his sentencing could include prison.

On Thursday, Trump was found guilty by a New York jury on all 34 counts of falsifying business records during his 2016 presidential bid to conceal a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet an alleged sexual encounter with her for the purpose of "influencing the election."

Trump, the 2024 presumptive GOP presidential nominee, is the first U.S. president to be found guilty of felony crimes.

"This was a disgrace. This was rigged trial," Trump said after the verdict was read. He added that the real verdict will come at the November presidential election.

Judge Juan Merchan set a sentencing date of July 11, four days before the Republican National Convention, where Trump is expected to be named the party’s presidential nominee.

On Friday, Trump held a press conference at Trump Tower to discuss his next steps.

"We're going to be appealing this scam," he said. "The judge was a tyrant...We're gonna fight," Trump asserted. "We will continue the fight. We're going to Make American Great Again!"

"As far as the trial itself, it was very unfair. We weren't allowed to use our election expert under any circumstances. You saw what happened to some of the witnesses... they were literally crucified," he added. "It was a rigged trial. We wanted a venue change... we wanted a judge change," Trump said.

Several legal experts believe that Trump would win on appeal, but disagree on the timing of the appeals process. Some of them also noted that Trump could end up in prison.

Heritage Foundation senior legal fellow Hans von Spakovsky told the "Just the News, No Noise" TV show on Thursday that “the New York appeals court has to put this all on an expedited schedule.”

He added that if Trump’s appeal to the New York Appellate Division is not successful, then a direct appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court instead of the New York Court of Appeals -- New York's highest court -- might be in the cards, because the violations that occurred in this particular case violate the federal Constitution and the substantive due process rights of a defendant.

Article III Project Founder Mike Davis joined von Spakovsky on the TV show, adding that the appellate process will likely continue after the November election.

“There are so many constitutional problems with this jury verdict in this conviction that's going to come from this jury verdict and this sentence that's going to come from this conviction,” Davis said.

“There is no doubt that the appellate courts, even if it requires the Supreme Court of the United States, that the appellate courts will reverse this. The issue is, I doubt it will get reversed before November 5th, 2024. And that is exactly what Biden is counting on. They want to call Trump a convicted felon to interfere in the election,” he added.

Commenting on the possible sentence Trump may receive from Merchan, Davis said, “Don't be surprised if this judge tries to put President Trump in prison, or at a minimum, tries to put him in some sort of home confinement, and try to keep him off the campaign trail.”

Former New York congressman Lee Zeldin also told the "Just the News, No Noise" TV show on Thursday that Trump’s conviction will likely win on appeal after the November election.

“This obviously will be appealed. In my opinion, it absolutely should be overturned on appeal. It likely wouldn't get overturned on appeal before the November election, unfortunately. Is it possible? Yes. Is it likely? No,” Zeldin said.

“President Trump, ultimately, I believe is absolutely going to end up being successful with his appeal effort, but the damage will already be done as far as the Democrats landing their campaign talking point. And by the way, they scheduled sentencing for right before the Republican Convention? How many reminders are they going to give us, as far as what this really is all about?” he added.

Constitutional Law expert and Harvard Law School Professor Emeritus Alan Dershowitz told the "Just the News, No Noise" TV show on Friday that he believes the U.S. Supreme Court would overturn the New York ruling against Trump.

“Starting at the end, if the Supreme Court of the United States were to take the case, and that would probably be after the election, it would almost certainly reverse the conviction. There's no constitutional basis for this conviction standing,” Dershowitz said.

However, since the First Department Appellate Division of New York is made up of elected judges who live in Manhattan, he believes that Trump “doesn't have much of a chance. He may have a chance to the Court of Appeals.”

“I would try to skip the Appellate Division and try to go right to the New York Court of Appeals for an expedited immediate appeal, and then seek an expedited appeal to the United States Supreme Court,” Dershowitz recommended. “It is possible. It's uphill, we're not sure. And it depends on what the sentence is, as well.”

Regarding sentencing, Dershowitz said, "A lot of people are predicting probation. I don't predict that. I predict that [Judge Juan Merchan] will sentence Trump to prison, but suspend the sentence. So he gets the symbolism of prison without him actually having to go to jail."

"But he will sentence him to, say, two years in prison, suspended, because he has no prior record, or something like that. But he's not going to just, I think, give him probation or just a fine. He's going to try to do more than that," he continued. 

Dhillon Law Group Founder Harmeet Dhillon told the "Just the News, No Noise" TV show on Thursday that she’s worried Trump will be sentenced to prison during his appeals process.

"What's concerning me is whether this judge is going to continue his pattern of harassment and intimidation against President Trump and his team by incarcerating President Trump while he appeals these ludicrous charges and conviction,” Dhillon said.

She also noted that the appeals court process will likely take time, which would be beneficial for Trump’s legal team.

"Typically, the Courts of Appeal move on their own somewhat glacial pace. You’ll find that a lot of Courts of Appeal are kind of on semi-vacation on the summers. You cannot predict how appeals are going to go in this type of a situation," Dhillon said. “But, in this particular case, one issue already went up on appeal, and that is whether the judge should have recused himself, and the New York intermediate appellate court did not grant relief on that issue.

“Even the appellate lawyers on President Trump's side are going to want their time to compile the record and perfect all these elements of appeal,” she added. "I don't think this is something that's going to be necessarily expedited … unless the New York appeals court wants to do that for its own political purposes, and that wouldn't surprise me. And that's not going to be favorable for President Trump."