A special counsel is considering dismissing cases against Trump in election interference and classified documents

On November 26, 2024By Pranco

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors on Monday decided to dismiss criminal charges against President-elect Donald Trump, who accused him of killing him. making plans to overturn the 2020 election and to drop the classified documents case against him, citing longstanding Justice Department policy that says sitting presidents cannot face criminal charges.

The decision by Special Counsel Jack Smith, who had fiercely sought to hold Trump criminally responsible for his efforts to undermine the 2020 election, marked the end of federal efforts against the former president following his election victory this month, despite the election-related cases and multiple other unrelated criminal charges against him and heads back to the White House.

The decision, revealed in court filings, also amounts to a predictable but nonetheless stunning conclusion to criminal cases that were seen as the most dangerous of the many legal threats Trump has faced. It reflects the practical consequences of Trump’s victory and sees him come to power without oversight of his collection of top-secret documents and his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election that he lost to Democrat Joe Biden.

Smith’s team emphasized that the move to drop prosecutions in federal courts in Washington and Florida was not a reflection of their views on the merits of the cases, but rather a reflection of their commitment to long-standing department policy.

“That prohibition is categorical and does not address the seriousness of the crimes charged, the strength of the government’s evidence, or the merits of the prosecution, which the government fully supports,” prosecutors wrote Monday in the court filing. filed election interference. case.

The decision was expected after Smith’s team began assessing how to wrap up both the 2020 election interference case and the case of separate classified documents in the wake of Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris. The Justice Department believes Trump can no longer be tried, in line with longstanding policy that says sitting presidents cannot be prosecuted.

Trump has labeled both cases as politically motivated and has promised to fire Smith once he takes office in January.

The 2020 election lawsuit filed last year was once seen as one of the most serious legal threats the Republican faced as he vied to win back the White House. But it quickly came to a standstill amid legal battles over Trump’s sweeping claims of immunity from prosecution for actions he committed in the White House.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in July for the first time that former presidents enjoy broad immunity from prosecution, sending the case back to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan to determine what, if any, charges in the indictment could go to trial.

The case was just starting to pick up steam again in court in the weeks leading up to this year’s election. Smith’s team filed a lengthy letter in October outlining new evidence they planned to use against him at trial, accusing him of “resorting to crimes” in an increasingly desperate attempt to subdue the will of overturning voters after he lost to Biden.

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Associated Press writer Colleen Long contributed to this story.