Recent searches
Search options
Judge #Chutkan tosses #Trump 2020 #ElectionInterference case after prosecutors' request
A US judge on Monday dismissed the federal #criminal case accusing Trump of attempting to overturn his #2020election defeat after prosecutors moved to drop that prosecution & a second case against the president-elect, citing #DOJ policy against prosecuting a sitting president.
#democracy #Jan6 #insurrection #law #justice
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-prosecutor-smith-asks-judge-dismiss-2020-election-subversion-case-against-2024-11-25/
The order from #Chutkan puts an end to the federal effort to hold #Trump criminally responsible for his attempts to hold onto #power after losing the #2020election, culminating in the #Jan6, 2021 violent #insurrection at the #US Capitol by a mob of his supporters.
The move came after #SpecialCounsel #JackSmith …moved to dismiss the #ElectionInterference case & end his attempt to revive a separate case accusing Trump of illegally retaining #ClassifiedDocuments when he left office in 2021….
It represents a big legal victory for #Trump, who won the Nov 5 #US election & is set to return to office on Jan 20.
The #DOJ policy that the prosecutors cited dates back to the 1970s. It holds that a #criminal prosecution of a sitting president would violate the US #Constitution by undermining the ability of the country's *chief executive* to *function*. Courts will still have to approve both requests from prosecutors.
The prosecutors in a filing in the #ElectionSubversion case said the #DOJ’s policy requires the case to be dismissed before #Trump returns to the White House.
"This outcome is not based on the merits or strength of the case against the defendant," prosecutors wrote in the filing.
@Nonilex it isn’t dismissed though, it’s withdrawn. This means double jeopardy doesn’t apply should trump still be on the top of the grass when his term ends.