Former President Donald Trump will be able to attend his son Barron's high school graduation in May, according to Judge Juan Merchan.
Merchan, who is presiding over the New York hush Money trial, said Tuesday that Trump would be permitted to attend the May 17 ceremony in lieu of court proceedings. The judge had previously delayed his decision earlier this month on whether Trump would be able to attend the graduation. (RELATED: Judge Could Compel Trump To Miss Son's Graduation)
The Hill has more:
Trump had previously railed against Merchan for delaying the decision, slamming the judge for potentially barring him from attending the event. Under New York state law, Trump is required to attend the entirety of his trial unless he gets special permission from the judge to skip.
“I was looking forward to that graduation with his mother and father there,” Trump told reporters at the time. “It looks like the judge isn't going to allow me to escape this scam. It's a scam trial.”
Other Republicans and Trump allies also criticized Merchan after he delayed the decision. Another of Trump's sons, Eric Trump, said earlier this month that the judge “is truly heartless in not letting a father attend his son's graduation.”
Trump is being charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records to make alleged hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels.
On Tuesday, Judge Merchan also fined the former President nearly $10,000 for repeatedly violating the gag order barring him from targeting witnesses, prosecutors, court staff, and the judge's family.
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