On Friday, the US Supreme Court denied Jack Smith’s plea for an expedited ruling on Trump’s immunity argument.
Last Monday, Jack Smith attempted to skirt around the appellate court and went straight to the US Supreme Court on Trump’s immunity claims.
Subsequently, on Wednesday, President Trump urged the US Supreme Court to dismiss Jack Smith’s plea to expedite the ruling on his immunity argument.
Trump’s legal team argued that he is shielded from federal prosecution for the alleged “crimes” committed during his time as US President.
This is a huge blow to Jack Smith’s case as it guarantees that there won’t be a trial prior to the November 2024 election.
The Supreme Court has denied Special Counsel Smith’s request for an expedited review of the case against Trump.
— Techno Fog (@Techno_Fog) December 22, 2023
There won’t be a trial in DC before the 2024 election.
No mistake – this is a big loss for the Special Counsel. pic.twitter.com/nCNiiJe5lG
CNN reported (bolding added for emphasis):
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a request by special counsel Jack Smith to fast-track arguments on whether Donald Trump has any immunity from federal prosecution for alleged crimes he committed while in office – a move that will likely delay his trial.
The court did not explain its reasoning and there were no noted dissents.
The court’s decision is a major blow to Smith, who made an extraordinary gamble when he asked the justices to take the rare step of skipping a federal appeals court and quickly deciding a fundamental issue in his election subversion criminal case against Trump.
Both sides will still have the option of appealing an eventual ruling by the DC Circuit Court of Appeals up to the high court, but the court’s move is a major victory for Trump, whose strategy of delay in the criminal case included mounting a protracted fight over the immunity question, which must be settled before his case goes to trial.
An expedited review of the issue is already underway at the DC Circuit, which has scheduled oral arguments for January 9. The election subversion trial is currently set to begin in March.
In urging the court to not take the case, Trump’s attorneys argued the special counsel was trying to “rush to decide the issues with reckless abandon.”
“The fact that this case arises in the vortex of political dispute warrants caution, not haste,” Trump attorneys wrote in court papers.
Trump’s team had asked the appeals court earlier this month to examine the immunity ruling issued by District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing his criminal case.
Chutkan had rejected arguments from Trump’s attorneys that the criminal indictment should be thrown out because he was working to “ensure election integrity” as part of his official capacity as president when he allegedly undermined the 2020 election results, and therefore is protected under presidential immunity. The judge has paused all procedural deadlines in the case while the appeal plays out.
But Smith’s team sought to bypass the appeals court’s review of the matter by having the justices step in now.
