The New York judge who presided over Donald Trump’s hush money case on Friday sentenced the president-elect to an “unconditional discharge,” meaning he is now a convicted felon in the eyes of New York state law but will face no further penalties.

The rare and lenient sentence, which will spare President-elect Donald J. Trump jail time, was used to address his unusual status.

Follow live updates and the latest news coverage as Trump attends his sentencing hearing with Judge Juan Merchan following jury conviction in his hush money case.

President-elect Donald Trump is facing sentencing for his New York hush money conviction after the nation's highest court refused to intervene.

The president-elect received an unconditional discharge of his sentence, which formalizes his status as a felon and makes him the first to carry that distinction into the White House. He had fought to avoid the proceeding at every turn.

Donald Trump was convicted in May on 34 counts of falsifying business records. He was sentenced Friday in a New York court.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will not go to jail or pay a fine over his criminal conviction stemming from hush money paid to a porn star, a judge ruled on Friday, but the sentencing will place a judgment of guilt on his record.