The US Supreme Court has accepted Donald Trump’s appeal on the question of the ex-president’s immunity from prosecution. The Supreme Court announced that a hearing is planned for the end of April. With this step by the court, it remains unclear whether and when the trial against the former president for attempted election fraud can begin in Washington. The decision is a success for Trump as he tries to delay the start of the trial as much as possible.
Trump is indicted in the US capital Washington in connection with attempted election fraud. Trump supporters stormed the parliament building in Washington on January 6, 2021. Congress met there to formally confirm Democrat Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election.
Trump had previously incited his supporters during a speech. As a result of the riots, five people died. Before the storming of the Capitol, Trump had already tried at various levels to overturn the election results. He still does not recognize his defeat against Biden and wants to move back into the White House after the presidential election in November.
Trump wants charges dropped
Trump and his lawyers want the charges dropped. They are citing Trump’s immunity in his office as president at the time. They argue that Trump cannot be legally prosecuted for actions that were part of his duties as president. They most recently failed with this argument before an appeals court in the US capital at the beginning of February. This ruled that the 77-year-old Republican could be prosecuted criminally for his actions in office. Trump has taken legal action against this decision at the Supreme Court.
The court has now announced that it will examine “whether and, if so, to what extent a former president enjoys immunity from criminal prosecution for conduct allegedly related to official acts during his term in office.”
Both sides will present their positions at the hearing at the end of April. It will then likely take several weeks for the court to make a decision. The decision on protection from criminal prosecution also has immense importance for future presidents. If they really enjoy immunity, they could potentially commit crimes in office without having to fear consequences. But it remains to be seen what exactly the Supreme Court’s ruling will be.
Election fraud trial in Washington about to end?
The judge responsible for the election fraud case had postponed the start of the trial indefinitely until the question of immunity was finally clarified. The process was actually supposed to begin at the beginning of March. If the court rules in favor of the Republican, it could mean the end of the election fraud trial in Washington.
Trump wants to move back into the White House for the Republicans after the election and regularly describes the investigations against him as a “political witch hunt” and portrays himself as a victim of the justice system. So far everything points to a new edition of the race between him and the Democratic incumbent Biden. So far, the investigations against him have not hurt Trump in polls. This could change if Trump were convicted by a jury before the election.
Four criminal cases against Trump
In total, Trump is facing four criminal cases against him – in addition to the federal election fraud case, there is another in the US state of Georgia. Trump has also been charged with taking secret government documents after his time in office and in connection with hush money to a porn star. At the same time, civil proceedings are underway against him.
The Supreme Court is currently dealing with another Trump case. The question is whether the Republican can continue to take part in the primaries or even be excluded from the office of president. The judges were rather skeptical – a decision in Trump’s favor was indicated at a hearing. It is unclear when the verdict will come. Trump had previously appealed to the court to overturn a ruling from the state of Colorado that disqualified him from running in the 2021 primary because of his role in the 2021 attack on the US Capitol.
The Supreme Court has moved significantly to the right under Trump. The Republican significantly shifted the majority on the court during his term in office. However, in the past, the court did not always rule in favor of the former president.
