Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked a judge to drop all charges in his election interference case against President-elect Donald Trump, citing a Justice Department policy that sitting presidents cannot be indicted or prosecuted.
“The Department’s position is that the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated,” Smith wrote in a six-page filing.
Trump’s team—which has criticized Smith’s investigations as a partisan “weaponization” of the Justice Department aimed at undermining the former president—celebrated the motion to dismiss the case as a “major victory for the rule of law.”
“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,” Trump communications director Steven Cheung said in a Monday statement. “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.”
U.S. District Court judge Tanya Chutkan will need to approve the request before the case is dismissed.
Smith charged Trump last year with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and illegally retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. Trump pleaded not guilty to all felony charges in that case and took the election interference battle to the Supreme Court, winning on the grounds of presidential immunity. Following the High Court’s ruling, Smith filed a new indictment, to which Trump also pleaded not guilty.
After Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris earlier this month, Smith signaled he would begin winding down the case against the president-elect.
Smith plans to “finish his work and resign” before Trump has the chance to remove him, individuals familiar with the special counsel’s plans said. Trump in an October interview vowed to fire Smith “within two seconds” of taking office.
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