The defense has attempted to postpone the proceedings until after the election. Now that he has been elected, he will try to delay it even further. The Justice Department may close some cases before the inauguration.
Donald Trump had already become the first former US president to be accused and convicted in a judicial process. Now he has become the first convict to win a presidential race. The Republican still has several cases in court, which begs the question: What happens now with these accusations? Politico sums it up: “Say goodbye to Trump’s lawsuits.” At least for the next four years, recalls Reuters.
In federal criminal cases, the end may be more in sight than the rest. According to NBC News, the Justice Department is considering closing the case against the president-elect before he takes office on January 20, as it sees “no room to continue with any of the criminal proceedings,” so it “does not do so.” It makes sense to continue litigating with them in the weeks before the inauguration,” two sources familiar with the process inform the station. Reuters also writes that the criminal proceedings against the president-elect “will essentially end,” “at least” within the four years he is in the White House.
In both criminal and civil cases, Trump will be able to use his new position to escape convictions and sentences, which under normal circumstances could include a prison sentence or the payment of millions of dollars in compensation.
As for federal proceedings, whether and how the cases will be closed will depend for now on Jack Smith, the special counsel who formally accused Trump of interfering in the 2020 election and illegally keeping sensitive documents in the country. complex from Mar-a-Lago, in addition to supposedly preventing its recovery by the authorities. In an interview in October, Trump said that if elected, he would pardon himself or fire the special counsel. “I would fire him in two seconds,” he said, characterizing Smith as “a very dishonest man.”
If elected, Trump will “fire” the special counsel prosecuting him
According to Politico, whoever Trump chooses to head the Justice Department will have the power to formally drop all federal charges against him. This means that special prosecutor Jack Smith has two and a half months (until the Republican takes office) to expedite the cases he has been working on since November 2022. Trump has resorted to every possible maneuver to be tried as soon as possible. as late as possible and preferably after the elections. And it has succeeded in many cases.
CNN International puts another question on the table: does Smith have time to “weigh his options regarding issues that the department [de justiça] never had to face before”? One of them is to decide whether an elected President has the same legal protection as a sitting President. The future of judicial proceedings would depend on this response, but for now they are on the back burner.
In Washington, Trump faces criminal charges (four) for trying to overturn the 2020 election, and Judge Tanya Chutkan set several deadlines in November and December. Trump’s lawyers are expected to ask Chutkan to waive these deadlines, given his new role in the White House.
From obstruction to conspiracy: Trump formally charged with four crimes for interference in the 2020 elections
In Florida, where the businessman was charged with 40 felonies for taking confidential documents to the Mar-a-Lago mansion and preventing their recovery, District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the case on the grounds that Attorney General Merrick Garland had no power to name Jack Smith. Therefore, his appointment violated the Constitution. The prosecutor appealed the decision, but the appeal is unlikely to move forward before Trump reaches the White House, Politico writes.
Judge dismisses case against Trump for secret documents stolen from the White House
Trump is also being accused in Georgia of attempting to subvert the results of the 2020 election, in part by allegedly conspiring to corrupt the certification process in that state. But the case is in limbo after District Judge Fani Willis was accused of an alleged conflict of interest for having a relationship with a prosecutor she hired to lead the case. Although a judge refused to remove Willis from the case, Trump appealed, freezing the process. According to sources interviewed by CNN, even if Willis is removed, it is likely that no other prosecutor will want to take over the case, so it could fall by the wayside.
Trump could also seek to have the charges dropped or stayed during his presidency, arguing that sitting presidents have long been considered to enjoy broad immunity from lawsuits. Many legal experts have argued that courts will not allow a state prosecutor, like Willis, to bring criminal charges against a sitting president, citing the national interest. And even if Willis or another judge attempts to revive the case after 2029, when Trump leaves the White House, it will be difficult to move forward with an indictment nearly a decade after the events that gave rise to it.Politico explains.
In the case of the payment to former porn actress Stormy Daniels, which Trump allegedly tried to cover up, the Republican was subject to 34 counts of falsifying business records. The reading of the sentence is scheduled for November 26. The magnate’s lawyers have already postponed it twice and are expected to do so again, now arguing the transition of power. Even if he is sentenced to a prison sentence – which could be up to four years – Trump could postpone it until the end of the presidential term. Additionally, if the sentence involves house arrest or community service, Trump’s defense could try to postpone them. The defense has asked that the decision take into account the Supreme Court verdict that confers a certain presidential immunity.
Former President Donald Trump convicted of 34 crimes in the Stormy Daniels case
CNN also adds that Trump’s lawyers may raise constitutional questions that call into question a state judge’s power to convict an elected president. And this can drag out the process for (even more) years.
In this case, since it is a state process, Hey”But his unique role as president makes it unlikely that he will face legal consequences in either case during his term,” Reuters concludes.
Trump is also involved in civil lawsuits, including his alleged involvement in the attack on the Capitol in 2021, defamation cases involving writer E. Jean Carroll, who accused him of sexual assault, or a fraud case in New York in who is accused of having inflated his assets to obtain better credit conditions. But he should still try to take advantage of his return to the White House to avoid large financial sanctions, which could reach millions of dollars, arguing that they could interfere with his ability to perform his presidential duties.
Donald Trump sentenced to pay 77 million euros to writer E. Jean Carroll for defamation and conversations about the “witch hunt” led by Biden
CNN International writes that these cases are likely to continue developing as Trump serves his second term in the White House. And remember that in 1997, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously, in a civil case involving Bill Clinton, that sitting presidents could not invoke presidential immunity to avoid civil litigation while in office.
Source: Observadora
