又中又英｜Uncharted territory

History will be made on July 11 when a New York judge sentences former President Donald Trump for falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal. A jury found Trump guilty of falsifying records involving hush money he paid to a porn star for sex. A porn star is someone who performs extreme sexual acts in movies or videos. Hush money is money paid to people for not revealing something embarrassing, such as a sex scandal, to others. An article in the New York Times said it would be uncharted territory if Judge Juan Merchan sentences Trump to jail.

Uncharted territory refers to a new and unknown area that has not been mapped, but it can also mean something that has not happened before. Trump going to jail will be uncharted territory because US law requires the Secret Service, a government agency that protects top political leaders and their families, to protect him around the clock. Secret Service agents will have to separate him from other prisoners and make sure his food is safe. But it is not an urgent problem yet for the Secret Service because Trump is sure to appeal his conviction all the way to the Supreme Court.

Imprisonment is not compulsory for falsifying records. Judge Merchan can sentence Trump to probation. But that would cause the embarrassing situation of a former president having to report regularly to a civil servant about his travel plans and other personal things. It would be equally embarrassing for Trump to be sentenced to community service. The least embarrassing outcome for Trump is for the judge to order him to pay a fine.

當紐約法官就前美國總統唐納德‧特朗普偽造商業紀錄以掩飾性醜聞一案，於七月十一日判刑的時候，將會創造歷史。陪審團裁定，特朗普涉及向色情電影女星（porn star）就性關係支付封口費（hush money）而偽造文書的罪名成立。A porn star就是在色情電影或影片中演出激烈性行為的影星。Hush money是封口費，用來叫人不要向別人披露一件尷尬的事，例如性醜聞。《紐約時報》一篇文章指，若法官胡安‧默尚判處特朗普入獄，那就將是 uncharted territory。

Uncharted territory解作全新和無人涉足、在地圖上未標明的領域，但它也可以解作一樣從未發生過的事情。特朗普入獄將會是前所未有的境地（uncharted territory），因為美國法律會要求特勤局（Secret Service）——一個保護最高政治領袖及其親屬的政府機構——去二十四小時保護他。特勤局特工將會需要將他與其他囚犯隔離，及確保他的食物是安全進食的。然而，這還不是特勤局（Secret Service）的當務之急，因為特朗普一定會就自己的定罪上訴，並一直上訴至美國最高法院。

偽造文書並不一定會判處監禁。法官默尚可以判處特朗普緩刑，但這會令這一位前總統陷入一個尷尬的處境，就是需要定時向一位公務員匯報自己的外遊計劃及其他個人行程。若特朗普被判社會服務令，亦是同等的尷尬。對特朗普來說最不尷尬的結果，就是下令他付罰款。

 
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Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻