Donald Trump's first criminal trial delayed

The first criminal trial against Donald Trump will be delayed, a judge has decided.

Mr Trump's lawyers and the Manhattan district attorney agreed to a delay following the release of a new batch of documents from federal prosecutors.

Justice Juan Merchan set a 30-day delay and scheduled a hearing for 25 March, the original trial start date.

The decision further pushes back the timelines for Mr Trump's multiple criminal cases.

Mr Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, related to an alleged scheme to conceal hush-money payments to an adult film star named Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.

He has denied the allegations, and claimed the case is politically motivated.

The case would have been the first criminal trial of a former president in the US. Now, it may not go to trial until April, at the earliest.

A last-minute release of tens of thousands of pages of documents from federal prosecutors, who had also conducted an investigation into the payments in 2018, prompted both parties to seek a last minute reprieve.

The former president's team requested a 90-day delay, saying they required more time to review the documents. Manhattan District Attorney Alan Bragg agreed to a 30-day delay, which Justice Merchan ultimately agreed to.

The delay is likely good news for Mr Trump, who has sought to push back as many of his criminal trials as possible while he runs again for the White House.