Special Counsel Jack Smith asked U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan to drop the Biden-Harris administration’s election subversion and classified documents cases against President-elect Donald Trump on Monday.
“The (Justice) Department’s position is that the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated,” Smith wrote in a court filing pertaining to the federal government’s election subversion case against Trump, according to CNN. “This outcome is not based on the merits or strength of the case against the defendant.”
Trump was previously indicted on four felony charges last August over accusations that he incited a riot on January 6, 2021, and attempted to overturn the 2020 election results. The charges included conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights. Trump pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him in both the election subversion case and the classified documents case.
Smith’s investigations into Trump eventually led to the Supreme Court ruling that former presidents have immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts. The Supreme Court’s ruling also delayed the federal government’s election subversion case against Trump until after the 2024 election.
According to CNN, Despite Smith’s request to have Chutkan drop the government’s cases against Trump, the special counsel wrote, “The Government’s position on the merits of the defendant’s prosecution has not changed.”
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Prior to Smith’s filing on Monday, federal prosecutors had requested that the district court judge pause multiple deadlines in the Trump election subversion case as the prosecutors considered what to do with the case in light of Trump’s win over Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, according to CNN.
CNN reported that the president-elect previously indicated that he would fire Smith after returning to the White House.
In a statement sent to American Military News, Steven Cheung, Trump’s director of communications, said, “The American People re-elected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate to Make America Great Again. Today’s decision by the DOJ ends the unconstitutional federal cases against President Trump, and is a major victory for the rule of law.”
Cheung added, “The American People and President Trump want an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and we look forward to uniting our country.”