Smith acknowledges Trump's appeal on immunity ruling "suspends" the March 4 date. He's urging the high court to resolve it so the case can proceed"promptly."
“This case presents a fundamental question at the heart of our #democracy: whether a former president is absolutely #immune from #federal prosecution for #crimes committed while in office or is constitutionally protected from federal prosecution when he has been impeached but not convicted before the #criminal proceedings begin,” Smith wrote.
Judge #Chutkan, rejected #Trump’s claim of “absolute immunity” from the #ElectionInterference indictment bc it was based on actions he took while in office.
She condemned his attempts to “usurp the reins of government” & said there was nothing in the #law, #Constitution or American history supporting the proposition that a fmr president shouldn’t be bound by #federal#criminal law.
Trump appealed to the US Court of Appeals for DC & asked Chutkan to freeze the case until the appeal is resolved.
In his #SCOTUS brief, #JackSmith conceded that the trial would most likely have to be paused because of the #appeal of the #immunity issue.
Winning the appeal is only one of #Trump’s goals in challenging the decision. All along, he & his lawyers have had an alterative strategy: to #delay the #ElectionInterference trial for as long as possible.
If the trial were to be put off until after the #2024election & #Trump were to win, he could have his AG simply dismiss the charges. Holding a trial after the presidential race would also mean that #voters would never hear any of the #evidence that prosecutors have collected about Trump’s expansive efforts to reverse the results of the last election before weighing in on whether to re-elect him.
Even if #Trump’s #legal team can’t postpone the trial until after the presidential race, they hope to at least delay until the heart of the campaign season in Aug or Sept presenting Judge #Chutkan w/a difficult decision: Should she conduct the #trial when Trump would be holding rallies & meeting voters & suffer what is sure to be his vociferous complaints or make the decision herself to delay the trial until after the election?
#SpecialCounsel#JackSmith asked #SCOTUS to use certiorari before judgment, an unusual procedure typically used in cases involving national crises, like #Nixon’s refusal to turn over tapes.
Smith wrote, “the circumstances warrant expedited proceedings.” He added, “The public importance of the issues, the imminence of the scheduled trial date, & the need for a prompt & final resolution of respondent’s immunity claims counsel in favor of this court’s expedited review at this time.”
Add comment