The appeals court has agreed to dismiss charges related to Donald Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents, effectively ending Special Counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of Trump. The charges, first made in June 2023, accused Trump of retaining national defense information after leaving office and directing the deletion of security video at his Mar-a-Lago resort. Charges related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election were also dismissed by U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan. The special counsel’s office declined to comment on the ruling.
Federal prosecutors had originally asked for the documents case against Trump to be reinstated after being dismissed by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in July, citing the illegality of Smith’s appointment. With Trump being re-elected, the long-standing Justice Department policy that a sitting president cannot be prosecuted influenced the decision to dismiss the charges. Smith is expected to resign before Trump’s inauguration and file a formal report on his charges.
The remaining criminal cases against Trump, including a New York case involving hush money payments and a Georgia election interference case, are also in limbo. Trump’s attorneys argue for presidential immunity protections in the New York case, leading to a postponement of sentencing. The Georgia case, brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, has been delayed due to conflict of interest allegations. Trump continues to argue that the prosecutions were politically motivated and maintains his innocence in both cases.
Photo credit
www.nbcnews.com
