The judge presiding over the federal election interference case against Donald Trump on Wednesday suspended all proceedings in the criminal case pending the outcome of Trump's appeal, arguing that Trump is protected by presidential immunity.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan added that all deadlines and future court appearances in the case are temporarily postponed, but not canceled.
“If the Court's jurisdiction is restored, the Court will, in line with its obligation to ensure a speedy and fair trial for all parties, inter alia, maintain or continue future terms and conditions. ” the judge wrote. Trial is scheduled for March 4, 2024. ”
The judge said the decision does not affect Trump's release conditions, gag order or protection order in the case.
Trump campaign spokesperson Stephen Chan said of the decision, ``This is the end of Jack Smith's mad rush to judgment regarding his strategy to interfere in the 2024 presidential election in support of the Joe Biden campaign.'' This is a huge victory for President Trump and our rule of law."
Peter Kerr, a spokesman for Special Counsel Jack Smith's office, declined to comment.
Earlier this month, Chutkan ruled that presidential immunity does not protect Trump from charges of illegally trying to undermine the 2020 presidential election.
President Trump has said that the Constitution grants him "absolute immunity from prosecution for acts committed within the 'periphery' of public responsibility" until he is impeached and convicted while in office. insisted.
Chutkan disagreed in her earlier ruling, saying the "Constitution’s text, structure, and history do not support that contention. No court—or any other branch of government—has ever accepted it. And this court will not so hold. Whatever immunities a sitting President may enjoy, the United States has only one Chief Executive at a time, and that position does not confer a lifelong 'get-out-of-jail-free' pass."
Trump also argued that denying his claim could have a "chilling effect" on future presidents' decision making processes.
Chutkan suggested that could be a positive outcome.
"If the specter of subsequent prosecution encourages a sitting President to reconsider before deciding to act with criminal intent, that is a benefit, not a defect," she wrote. "Every President will face difficult decisions; whether to intentionally commit a federal crime should not be one of them," she added.
Trump quickly filed a notice of appeal of Chutkan's ruling.
Smith then asked both the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the Supreme Court to hear the appeal on an expedited basis.
Trump's attorneys urged the Court of Appeals not to expedite the case in a court filing earlier Wednesday.
“Whether a President of the United States may be criminally prosecuted for his official acts as President goes to the core of our system of separated powers and will stand among the most consequential questions ever decided by this Court," they wrote. "The manifest public interest lies in the Court’s careful and deliberate consideration of these momentous issues with the utmost care and diligence.”
Smith's team countered that “Expediting the appeal in this case is necessary to vindicate the public’s interest in a timely trial.”
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