Trump is Immune from Prosecution for Certain Acts in Federal Election Case

From: https://www.politico.com/news/2024/07/01/supreme-court-trump-immunity-opinion-00166014

Donald Trump is immune from prosecution for certain actions he took as president while trying to subvert the 2020 election, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday, further complicating efforts to bring Trump to trial in Washington on criminal charges of participating in fraud to cling to power.

For now, the ruling leaves the decision on how to classify the case explicitly in the hands of Chutkan, a judge appointed by Obama to the federal trial court in Washington. In January, Chutkan indicated that if the higher courts returned the case and allowed it to go to trial, she planned to give Trump’s defense a minimum of about three months to prepare for trial. She has broad discretion over whether to reschedule the trial and when, but she will now have to determine how to handle the Supreme Court’s requirement to carefully select the charges and possibly the evidence.

Also worth reading: “Peru Removes Migration Exemption for Vulnerable Venezuelan Minors and Requires Visa for All“

If she acts quickly to implement the Supreme Court’s decision and adheres to the three-month preparation period, the trial could theoretically begin in October, in the final weeks of the presidential campaign. However, the trial is expected to last more than a month, making it unlikely that a verdict would be reached before Election Day, November 5.

Conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, appointed by Trump, joined most of the majority decision. However, she did not sign a key part and wrote a concurring opinion stating that the court should not have ruled out allowing prosecutors to use evidence of a president’s official acts even when he cannot be prosecuted directly for them.

“The Constitution does not require blinding juries to the circumstances surrounding the conduct for which presidents can be held accountable,” Barrett wrote in an opinion that often seemed more at odds with the majority than she let on.

The charges against Trump in the federal election case are among the most serious he faces. The special prosecutor has accused the former president of four felonies that amount to a conspiracy to subvert democracy and deprive millions of voters of their right to vote.

Instagram:   @Paralegalclases
Facebook:   Instituto Paralegal de las Américas
Youtube:   Instituto Paralegal
Tiktok:   @Paralegalnews