Within an hour of America’s 45th President being found guilty of 34 felonies, a fellow attorney invited meout for a “celebratory beer” with other revelers.

I politely declined.

To be clear, I have no illusions that Donald Trump was innocent. Nor do I expect that voters will givehim another term in the White House.

Donald Trump is now a convicted felon: Can he still run for president?

But as Central Bucks West grad (and prominent Trump critic) P!NK sang, “We got a long way to go.”

I’ve prosecuted hundreds of criminal trials, and every verdict has been important – for the partiesinvolved, for the community, and for the justice system itself. Yet as important as guilty verdicts may be,they are still only moments in time. Whether Thursday’s historic verdict was the first milestone inDefendant Trump’s reckoning or, instead, the low point on an arc of redemption remains to be seen.

Don’t forget that Trump can (and will) appeal. Just last month I was consoling sexual assault survivorsafter a New York appeals court overturned the Harvey Weinstein rape conviction that, until then, hadbeen a watershed victory for the #metoo movement. We previously went through this in Pennsylvaniawith Bill Cosby.

If you think it’s farfetched that the U.S. Supreme Court would break precedent to followSpeaker Mike Johnson’s call to “step in,” take a look at the Dobbs decision (or the pending questionsabout the impartiality of Justices Alito and Thomas). Of course, Trump won’t be sentenced until at leastJuly, leaving him with opportunities to challenge the jury’s verdict even before an appeal.

It’s also too early to celebrate a win against the abuse of presidential power. Although the jury’s verdictis historic, it relates to crimes that Trump committed before he became president. Trump has yet to facetrial for inciting insurrection in Washington, D.C. or for trying to overturn the election results inGeorgia. Even his trial for mishandling confidential documents in Florida remains in limbo. While theNew York verdict affirms the rule of law in the United States, we have not yet joined the nations thathave successfully prosecuted corrupt heads of state for abusing their offices.

Ultimately, it’s hard to see Trump’s loss as a win for democracy while he could still return to power. Heis the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party, which has gone from trying to curb his worstimpulses to celebrating them. Having prosecuted my share of crooked politicians, I know that the greatestpower to hold them accountable is often in the hands of voters, not prosecutors.

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None of this is to diminish the remarkable achievement by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, tosay nothing of the admirable service of the judge and the jury under extraordinary circumstances. DonaldTrump is now a felon, and no presidential pardon can change that. This result should make it easier tohold Trump accountable elsewhere, harder for Trump’s enablers to help him skirt justice, and less likelythat Trump will swing the general election in his favor. It’s what President Biden might call a “big…deal.”

Biden didn’t return to Philadelphia last week to take a victory lap – he was shoring up support. Heunderstands there is still work to be done. That’s why his campaign responded to the verdict succinctly:“There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box.”

Sorry democracy lovers, he’s exactly right. There’s still a long way to go. So, for now, stay informed,stay active, and get ready to vote.

And keep the beer on ice.

Joe Khan, the former Bucks County Solicitor, is a partner at Curtin & Heefner in Doylestown. Heserved as a federal and county prosecutor for 16 years

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Trump is guilty. But this is no time to celebrate: Op-Ed of Joe Khan