Judge Gives Donald Trump an Update on Barron's Graduation

New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan gave former President Donald Trump an update on attending his son, Barron's graduation.

On Tuesday, Newsweek's Katherine Fung, who is inside the New York courthouse where Trump's criminal hush-money trial is taking place, reported that Merchan is allowing the former president to attend his son's graduation.

"Trump will be allowed to attend Barron's graduation on May 17, Merchan rules. He says that with the trial moving per schedule, it will 'not be a problem' for Trump to attend his son's high school graduation," Fung reported on X, formerly Twitter.

Newsweek has reached out to Trump's spokesperson via email for comment.

The Context

On Tuesday, Trump appeared in a Manhattan courthouse for his ongoing criminal trial brought by District Attorney Alvin Bragg in connection to alleged hush money payments made to former adult film star Stormy Daniels.

In April 2023, the former president was indicted by Alvin Bragg who said Trump "fraudulently falsified New York business records to conceal crimes that hid damaging information from the voting public during the 2016 presidential election." Trump has denied any wrongdoing in the case.

In mid-April, Merchan had said Trump attending it or not depended on whether the trial ran on schedule, which caused some uproar among Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters. Barron Trump, 18, the only child from Melania Trump's marriage to the ex-president, is due to graduate from Oxbridge Academy in Palm Beach, Florida on May 17.

What We Know

Trump previously said that he was barred from attending his son's graduation as he would be required to attend the trial hearings.

"Who will explain for me, to my wonderful son, Barron, who is a GREAT Student at a fantastic School, that his Dad will likely not be allowed to attend his Graduation Ceremony, something that we have been talking about for years, because a seriously Conflicted and Corrupt New York State Judge wants me in Criminal Court on a bogus 'Biden Case' which, according to virtually all Legal Scholars and Pundits, has no merit, and should NEVER have been brought," Trump wrote in a post to Truth Social earlier this month.

Merchan had said he received requests from Donald Trump's attorneys asking whether he could attend Barron Trump's graduation on May 17, at the time more than four weeks away, in Palm Beach, Florida.

Merchan said it was too early to make a decision. "It really depends on if we are on time and where we are in the trial," he said.

Views

At the time, Trump's lawyer Alina Habba had told Fox News it was "a sad state of affairs for the American people."

Kari Lake, a Republican Senate candidate from Arizona, had said: "All the hard work our kids put into graduating, & President Trump is being robbed of getting to experience his son's High School graduation ceremony."

"I am heartbroken for President Trump & Barron," Lake added.

What's Next

Merchan also ruled on Tuesday that the former president violated a gag order placed against him on nine separate occasions. Trump will be required to pay a total of $9,000 for the violations.

Trump's trial is expected to continue over the next few weeks.

Update 4/30/24, 9:51 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with further information.

Update 4/30/24, 10:35 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with further information.