On Sept. 5, District Judge Tanya Chutkan set deadlines for former President Donald Trump’s federal election interference case, allowing special counsel Jack Smith to present evidence before the November election.
Zack Smith, a former federal prosecutor and senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation, discussed key points from the hearing with NTD.
On July 1, the Supreme Court ruled that Trump has immunity for actions taken as part of his official presidential duties, marking a significant legal victory for him.
“As anticipated, those immunity issues were front and center at today’s hearing,” Zack Smith said.
He noted that much of the dispute revolves around whether Trump is immune regarding his interactions with former Vice President Mike Pence or if Jack Smith can use those interactions as a factual basis for some of the charges brought against Trump.
He said Jack Smith has until Sept. 26 to file his opening brief. Trump’s lawyers will have time shortly after that to respond.
Smith believed there was no point in setting the trial date right now, because apart from the immunity issues, Chutkan would also need to resolve “whether or not Jack Smith was unconstitutionally appointed,” which could lead to the indictment against Trump being dismissed.
The hearing also brought up the issue of timing, with Trump’s team requesting the case be postponed until after the election, but the judge deemed that irrelevant.
Zack Smith said that since the special counsel and the Justice Department are trying to move these cases along as quickly as possible, it will inevitably impact the upcoming election.
“If for no other reason, they’re taking away Donald Trump’s time and attention from being on the campaign trail and discussing the issues that many Americans care about,” he said.
Chutkan allowed prosecutors to file court documents later this month to support Jack Smith’s revised indictment, which is expected to include new evidence, such as previously unseen grand jury transcripts.
Zack Smith said he was unsure of the outcome, but added that “whatever Judge Chutkan rules on this immunity issue, it is likely to be appealed to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. The precedent in the D.C. Circuit is not as favorable to Donald Trump as it has been in the 11th Circuit or other courts, so it’s very possible the U.S. Supreme Court could be asked to take up some of these important issues again in the near future.”
He concluded, “There’s a lot of legal wrangling that still has to take place, and many important issues Judge Chutkan needs to resolve before we get anywhere close to a jury hearing these charges against Donald Trump.”