Supreme Court delays criminal case against Trump.
The Supreme Court has extended the delay in the Washington criminal case against Donald Trump on charges that he plotted to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss, making it unlikely that the former president could be tried before the upcoming November election.
According to The Washington Times, in a landmark 6-3 decision, the justices ruled for the first time that former presidents, including Donald Trump have absolute immunity from prosecution for their official acts and no immunity for unofficial acts.
However, instead of defining the specifics themselves, the justices directed lower courts to determine how to apply this decision to Trump’s case.
This ruling implies further delay before Trump could face trial in the case brought by special counsel Jack Smith.
The court’s decision in this case, along with another major ruling rejecting efforts to bar Trump from the ballot due to his actions following the 2020 election, highlights the significant and potentially uncomfortable role the justices are playing in the November election.
The ruling, which was the last of the term, came more than two months after the court heard arguments, a slower timeline compared to other significant high court cases involving the presidency, such as the Watergate tapes case.
The former Republican president has denied any wrongdoing and has claimed that this prosecution and three others are politically motivated attempts to prevent his return to the White House.
In May, Trump became the first former president to be convicted of a felony in a New York court. He was found guilty of falsifying business records to conceal a hush money payment made during the 2016 presidential election to a porn actor who alleges she had sex with him, a claim he denies. He still faces three other indictments.
Special counsel Jack Smith is leading two federal investigations of the former president, both of which have resulted in criminal charges. The Washington case centers on Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election after losing to Democrat Joe Biden. The Florida case involves the mishandling of classified documents. The third case, in Georgia, also pertains to Trump’s actions following his 2020 defeat.
If Trump’s Washington trial does not occur before the 2024 election and he does not secure another term in the White House, he would likely stand trial shortly after. However, if he wins, he could appoint an attorney general who might seek to dismiss this case and the other federal prosecution he faces. Trump could also attempt to pardon himself if he returns to the White House, although he cannot pardon himself for the New York state court conviction.
The Supreme Court that heard the case included three justices appointed by Trump—Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh—and two justices who chose not to recuse themselves despite questions about their impartiality.
Justice Clarence Thomas’ wife, Ginni, attended the rally near the White House where Trump spoke on January 6, 2021, although she did not go to the Capitol when a mob of Trump supporters attacked it shortly thereafter. Following the 2020 election, she referred to it as a “heist” and exchanged messages with then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, urging him to stand firm with Trump as he falsely claimed widespread election fraud.
Justice Samuel Alito also declined to step aside from the cases following reports by The New York Times that flags similar to those carried by the January 6 rioters flew above his homes in Virginia and on the New Jersey shore. His wife, Martha-Ann Alito, was responsible for flying both the inverted American flag in January 2021 and the “Appeal to Heaven” banner in the summer of 2023, he explained in letters to Democratic lawmakers responding to their recusal demands.
Trump’s trial was initially scheduled to begin on March 4, but this was before he sought court-sanctioned delays and a comprehensive review of the issue by the nation’s highest court.
Prior to the Supreme Court’s involvement, both a trial judge and a three-judge appellate panel unanimously ruled that Trump can be prosecuted for actions taken while in the White House and leading up to January 6.
“For the purpose of this criminal case, former President Trump has become citizen Trump, with all of the defenses of any other criminal defendant,” the appeals court wrote in February. “But any executive immunity that may have protected him while he served as President no longer protects him against this prosecution.”
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who would preside over the trial in Washington, ruled against Trump’s immunity claim in December. In her ruling, Chutkan stated that the office of the president “does not confer a lifelong ‘get-out-of-jail-free’ pass.”
“Former Presidents enjoy no special conditions on their federal criminal liability,” Chutkan wrote. “Defendant may be subject to federal investigation, indictment, prosecution, conviction, and punishment for any criminal acts undertaken while in office.”
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