Trump trial update: The fate of Jack Smith’s election case is in limbo.
Keeping up with Donald Trump’s court schedule is a dizzying task, since he faces two federal trials, a criminal trial in Georgia, and two separate civil and criminal trials in New York. (Oh, and he’s running for president.) To make it easier to follow along, each week we’ll be looking back on all the recent Trump trial–related developments you might have missed. (Keeping Up With the Trump Trialswill be taking a break over the December holidays and will be back the first week of January.)
As we head into the holiday season, Trump’s civil fraud trial is in the process of winding down and should wrap up in the new year. And all eyes are on the Supreme Court as it considers two matters that could delay Trump’s federal 2020 election interference trial (the one that was set to start in Washington on March 4). Here’s the latest:
The Jan. 6 Legal Challenge That Could Affect Jack Smith’s Case
What “corrupt” actions fall under the definition of “obstruction to an official proceeding”? The answer to that question could affect over 300 cases brought by the Department of Justice—including the one special counsel Jack Smith brought against former President Trump.
Last week, the Supreme Court agreed to take on a case brought by Joseph Fischer, a former Pennsylvania police officer, that seeks an answer to this question. Fischer was charged with obstructing an official proceeding after entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, along with a slew of other charges, and has been trying to get this specific charge, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, dismissed. At first, a Trump-appointed judge did dismiss Fischer’s charge of obstruction, arguing that because his actions didn’t amount to tampering with a “document, record or other object,” he had not violated the statute.
AdvertisementThe DOJ appealed that decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals, and it worked, reversing the earlier court’s decision for its narrow interpretation. The appeals court also said that the statute in question applies to all forms of action that are intended to obstruct an official proceeding, not just document tampering.
Advertisement Advertisement AdvertisementFischer appealed again—and now the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case and will issue a decision at some point before June 2024. It’s not immediately clear how the court will handle it, but three legal experts writing for Slate expect that it won’t ultimately delay the trial much, if at all.
Jack Smith’s Election Interference Case Is on Pause
The Supreme Court is also considering whether to weigh in on Trump’s presidential immunity appeal.
AdvertisementTrump’s lawyers have been trying to get the DOJ’s federal election interference case dismissed, arguing that Trump is protected from prosecution for actions he took while he was in office. Initially, Judge Tanya Chutkan, assigned with overseeing this case, rejected the absolute immunity argument, but the DOJ’s case is now on hold while an appeals court decides on Trump’s claim. But before the appeals court could make a decision, Smith took an unusual step: In order to avoid delaying the March 4, 2024, start to the trial, he petitioned the Supreme Court to consider whether a president has absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for conduct Trump committed while in office.
By going to SCOTUS directly, Smith is hoping the justices agree to supersede the appeals court decision, since it’s likely to end up with the high court anyway. Luckily for Smith, the Supreme Court signaled that it was considering his petition—but this is still no guarantee that it will hear this case. The appellate court, meanwhile, has agreed to its own expedited schedule, with briefing due in early January.
The New York Civil Fraud Trial Is Coming to an End
Since the beginning of October, Trump’s civil trial has been filled with theatrics, and last week was no exception. Trump was expected to testify again (he already testified for the prosecution) but suddenly dropped out, claiming on Truth Social that he had “nothing more to say.” And true to form, he also railed against New York Attorney General Letitia James and her case against him, chalking it up to “TOTAL ELECTION INTERFERENCE (BIDEN CAMPAIGN!) WITCH HUNT.”
Advertisement Advertisement AdvertisementJames’ suit charges Trump with knowingly overinflating his net worth and the value of some of his biggest signature properties—including Trump Tower and Mar-a-Lago—and doing so in order to secure loans and more favorable insurance terms. And before the trial began, Judge Arthur Engoron issued a pretrial ruling that found that Trump had committed fraud, pivoting the trial’s focus to determining just how much fraud and how large the penalty should be.
Trump’s lawyers vehemently denied there was any fraud and argued that there were disclaimers on every financial document warning lenders that valuations could be incorrect. They also claimed that no banks were harmed by doing business with Trump. At the same time, the New York attorney general’s office argued that Trump and his sons directly instructed their staff to overinflate valuations, even calling in Michael Cohen—Trump’s former personal fixer, who himself served prison time for campaign finance violations—to testify.
AdvertisementTrump will likely appeal Engoron’s verdict, just like he appealed the gag order Engoron issued, which banned the former president and his lawyers from publicly commenting on his court staff. A New York appeals court rejected that appeal.
Trump’s New York Gag Order Remains in Place
Speaking of that gag order: Trump’s attempts to fight it were once again unsuccessful last week.
Advertisement AdvertisementPopular in News & Politics
- We’ve Been Entertaining an Illusion About the Supreme Court. It’s Finally Been Shattered.
- The Lawyer Defending Idaho’s Abortion Ban Irritated the One Justice He Needed on His Side
- Why David Pecker’s Testimony Was So Credible
- Prosecutors Are Finally Revealing Their Strategy Against Trump
Back on Day 2 of the civil fraud trial, Trump took to Truth Social to publicly criticize Allison Greenfield, the principal law clerk who sat beside Engoron throughout the trial. That’s because Greenfield and Engoron would often pass notes and consult each other during oral arguments. Trump felt Greenfield was unfairly influencing his trial, referring to her as a “politically biased and out of control, Trump Hating Clerk.”
AdvertisementEngoron quickly issued a gag order on Trump and his lawyers that barred them from publicly speaking about his court staff, an order Trump violated twice, earning $15,000 in fines. Trump appealed the gag order, and last week a New York appellate court rejected the appeal. The court found that Trump had not used “the proper vehicle for challenging” it, essentially forcing him to go back to Engoron for his appeal.
AdvertisementIt’s not clear if Trump’s lawyers will reroute their appeal efforts to Engoron, since at this point the defense and prosecution have rested their cases and closing arguments are scheduled for Jan. 11. Even Chris Kise, Trump’s attorney, acknowledged that the appellate court’s decision essentially put his client in “a procedural purgatory.”
AdvertisementRelated From Slate
Shirin Ali
The Supreme Court Is Already Taking Jack Smith’s “Extraordinary Request” Seriously
Read MoreRudy Giuliani Lost His Defamation Lawsuit
A jury ordered the former New York City mayor to pay $148 million to former Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss. In his efforts to help Trump overturn the 2020 election results, Giuliani tweeted an edited video of both women counting ballots at Georgia’s State Farm Arena. The video was used to falsely accuse Freeman and Moss of adding “suitcases” of illegal ballots into Georgia’s ballot-counting process. Giuliani even publicly identified both women by name online and on TV, leading to a torrent of violent, racist harassment directed at the election workers.
AdvertisementFreeman and Moss said in court documents that Giuliani’s actions completely upended their lives. Freeman faced so many serious threats that the FBI recommended she not return to her home for more than two months, and on two separate occasions, strangers showed up to her grandmother’s home to make a “citizens’ arrest.” Moss received so many threatening emails at her job that it drove her to quit and find a new job elsewhere. Both women said they could no longer live at their homes. Moss even fears shopping at grocery stores in case she is recognized.
AdvertisementFreeman and Moss may also end up being witnesses in Smith’s federal election interference case. “Make no mistake. This huge verdict for Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss is a sign of how things will go for Trump before a jury—when these two American heroes are likely to be prosecution witnesses for Jack Smith and the Department of Justice,” former Department of Defense special counsel Ryan Goodman wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Giuliani also faces 13 charges in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ election interference case—the same number as Trump—and is an unindicted co-conspirator in Smith’s federal election interference case. Oh, and he had his law license suspended.
Tweet Share Share Comment(责任编辑:关于我们)
- 雅安市第四人民医院:工娱治疗让患者康复之路充满希望
- Rapper NO:EL arrested over allegedly assaulting police officer, refusing breathalyzer
- N. Korea set for nuke test, but no sign of action yet: S. Korean defense chief
- 文化激发活力助推乡村振兴
- The Techies Who Lunch
- Listeners encouraged to go wild with Le Sserafim's 4th EP
- 雅安市第四届人民代表大会监察和司法委员会主任委员、副主任委员、委员名单
- Apple's iPhone 12 launch was like a 'Black Mirror' episode without the plot
- 大自然拥有疗愈人心的力量!波普艺术家吴膺铄为绿美广东代言
- Eng name ODI, T20I squads for Aus series
- Elon Musk describes Tesla pickup as 'armored personnel carrier from the future'
- Unification ministry ends 'fake news' monitoring on North Korea
- Disney+'s 'The Right Stuff' is a space drama with slow liftoff
-
Most of you are no doubt familiar with Intel, AMD, Qualcomm, IBM, Texas Instruments, and possibly ev ...[详细]
-
气温回暖,揭阳市揭东区桂岭镇玉白学校迎来一个明媚的冬日。体育课上,学生身穿色彩斑斓的棉袄,兴奋地在崭新的塑胶跑道上列队跑步,犹如五线谱上一个个跳动的音符,谱出一段充满活力的童谣;放学后,学生们没有急着 ...[详细]
-
My birthday in North Korea (part 1)
By Han Song-miThis time of year, I have many memories of my childhood in North Korea.I will never fo ...[详细] -
Apple's iPhone SE 2 will come in March, analyst claims
Information about Apple's (possibly) upcoming successor to the iPhone SE is trickling out slowly but ...[详细] -
2016's $400 GPU vs. 2019's $400 GPUs
Something we've been hearing a lot this year is that PC gaming is not in great shape, how there's a ...[详细] -
Medvedev ready to beat anybody in Australian Open
MELBOURNE:US Open champion Daniil Medvedev declared on Saturday that he is mentally and physically r ...[详细] -
Apple unveils Beats Solo Pro with noise cancellation and 22 hours of battery
While we're still waiting on Apple's rumored noise-canceling AirPods, we now know the company isaddi ...[详细] -
Conspiracy theorists and promoters of misinformation have had a harder time spreading falsehoods on ...[详细]
-
From Prairie Grasslands to Man
The Tree-Planter’s State is not a moniker that Nebraska takes lightly. That’s because what early exp ...[详细] -
Newcastle sign Burnley forward Chris Wood
LONDON:Newcastle announced the signing of striker Chris Wood from fellow Premier League strugglers B ...[详细]
Sinkhole swallows up car, injuring 2 in Seoul
Apple's iPhone SE 2 will come in March, analyst claims
- South Korea beefs up drills amid escalating NK provocations
- GoFundMe bans anti
- Man Utd must finish in top three, says Ronaldo
- Norton Secure VPN will help secure your connection
- Smiley face on Mars is a telltale sign of its past
- Disney+'s 'The Right Stuff' is a space drama with slow liftoff
- UN rapporteur vows to work with victims to improve North Korea's human rights