Ethics complaint against Trump ‘hush money’ judge over $15 Biden donations dismissed

An ethics complaint about donations to President Biden and other Democrats made by the judge overseeing Donald Trump’s Manhattan hush money trial has been dismissed, a New York state courts spokesman confirmed Friday.

Justice Juan Merchan was cleared by the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct last July, but the panel warned that the grievance could be an issue in the event the judge faces a future misconduct allegation.

“Justice Merchan said the complaint, from more than a year ago, was dismissed in July with a caution,” Al Baker, a spokesman for the state Office of Court Administration, told The Post.

A “caution” allows the commission to factor in the complaint if Merchan is accused of wrongdoing again.

It is unclear who filed the confidential complaint against Merchan.

The veteran judge contributed $15 earmarked for the “Biden for President” campaign on July 26, 2020, and then the following day made $10 contributions to the Progressive Turnout Project and Stop Republicans each, Federal Election Commission records show

The donations were made through ActBlue, the Democratic Party’s preferred online fundraising platform.

The Progressive Turnout Project’s stated mission is to “rally Democrats to vote,” according to the group’s website.

Stop Republicans is a subsidiary of the Progressive Turnout Project and describes itself as “a grassroots-funded effort dedicated to resisting the Republican Party and Donald Trump’s radical right-wing legacy.”

Political donations made by judges violate state Commission on Judicial Conduct rules, but the body notes in its most recent annual report that several dozen judges in the state have made prohibited contributions in the last few years, according to Reuters, which first reported the Merchan complaint’s dismissal.

The commission did not respond to a request for comment from The Post, but it’s proceedings are generally confidential unless it issues discipline against a judge.

Trump, 77, has railed against Merchan since his indictment on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records — deriding him as a “Trump-hating judge.”

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee has also gone after the judge’s daughter, Loren Merchan, over her own involvement in Democratic politics – through her work as head of the consulting firm Authentic Campaigns.

Trump is accused of fudging business records related to a $130,000 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, allegedly made to keep her from discussing an alleged sexual encounter with the former president in the lead up to the 2016 election.

He has pleaded not guilty.