Is trump a convicted felon?

1. What the jury found and why it matters

A Manhattan jury found Trump guilty on all 34 counts alleging falsified business records tied to payments intended to keep an allegation about his conduct from voters; outlets including The Associated Press and BBC described the verdict as historic because it made him the first former U.S. president to be convicted of felony crimes ^{[1] [4]}. The charges were class E felonies under New York law — the lowest felony tier there — which nonetheless carry potential prison exposure ^{[2] [5]}.

2. Sentencing outcome: convicted but no further penalties

Although convicted, Judge Juan Merchan sentenced Trump to an “unconditional discharge,” a sentence that affirms the conviction but imposes no jail time, fines, probation, or other penalties; outlets such as PBS and Houston Public Media explain that an unconditional discharge leaves him legally a convicted felon while sparing him additional punishment ^{[6] [3] [2]}.

3. Legal status vs. political and practical consequences

Reporting notes a distinction between the legal fact of conviction and the practical consequences one might expect: the conviction is part of the record (making him a “convicted felon” in that sense), but the lack of penal sanctions and ongoing appeals complicate how the conviction affects rights, offices, and political standing — for example, commentators and legal scholars have debated implications for voting, holding office, or firearm possession, and some coverage emphasizes that appeals and other challenges are active ^{[7] [8] [5]}.

4. Appeals and legal arguments the defense is raising

Trump’s legal team is actively appealing the conviction, arguing among other points that presidential immunity and errors in admitting certain evidence require overturning the verdict; Axios and BBC summaries cite filings asserting the case should not have been tried and that immunity or other legal errors should set aside the conviction ^{[9] [4]}. Major outlets note the appeals process is ongoing and could change the ultimate legal status ^{[9] [8]}.

5. How mainstream outlets and advocacy groups frame the milestone

News organizations (AP, PBS, BBC, People) uniformly reported the May 2024 guilty verdict and framed it as unprecedented — the first felony conviction of a U.S. president or former president — while advocacy groups such as Common Cause noted the historical significance and political implications as he returned to public office ^{[1] [2] [10]}. These framings are factual descriptions of what happened; they also carry implicit editorial weight because they emphasize novelty and democratic stakes ^{[1] [10]}.

6. Areas where sources diverge or leave questions open

Sources agree on the conviction and the unconditional discharge, but they differ in emphasis: some stress the historic nature of a presidential felony conviction ^[1], others emphasize the judge’s reasoning for a lenient sentence tied to practical or constitutional concerns ^[2], and legal commentaries flag uncertainty about downstream effects like firearm licenses or finality if appeals succeed ^{[8] [7]}. Available sources do not mention certain hypothetical outcomes (for example, explicit removal from office under the Constitution following a state felony) — those points are not covered in the provided reporting and thus cannot be asserted here.

7. Bottom line for the original question

Based on the supplied reporting, Donald Trump was convicted by a New York jury on 34 felony counts in May 2024 and was later sentenced to an unconditional discharge that leaves the conviction on the record; multiple mainstream outlets state he is a convicted felon under those developments ^{[1] [6] [2]}.

Limitations: this summary cites only the provided sources and does not attempt to adjudicate pending appeals or legal claims beyond what those sources report ^{[9] [8]}.