Trump denied immunity from 2020 election prosecution in court ruling
3 Min Read
The appeals court put the ruling on hold until Monday, allowing Trump the opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court, which will eventually decide whether to allow the appeal to go through or whether the lower court's ruling would stand.
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Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event January 27, 2024, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (AP)
In a landmark ruling, former US President Donald Trump has been denied immunity from prosecution on charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said, calling Trump's claim "unsupported by precedent, history or the text and structure of the Constitution."
The unanimous statement by the three judges in the panel said, "Former President Trump's stance would collapse our system of separated powers by placing the President beyond the reach of all three Branches," adding, "We cannot accept that the office of the Presidency places its former occupants above the law for all time thereafter."
According to a Trump spokesperson, the 77-year-old former president intends to file another appeal, after he called out the ruling on his Truth Social platform, saying it means "a President will be afraid to act for fear of the opposite Party's Vicious Retribution after leaving Office."
"A President of the United States must have Full Immunity in order to properly function and do what has to be done for the good of our Country... A Nation-destroying ruling like this cannot be allowed to stand."
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The appeals court put the ruling on hold until Monday, allowing Trump the opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court, which will eventually decide whether to allow the appeal to go through or whether the lower court's ruling would stand.
Law-abiding 'citizen Trump'
Last month, during his appeal, the three judges stated, "For the purpose of this criminal case, former President Trump has become citizen Trump, with all of the defenses of any other criminal defendant," noting, "But any executive immunity that may have protected him while he served as President no longer protects him against this prosecution."
Trump was set to go to trial on March 4 for the charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results won by Democrat and current president Joe Biden, but District Judge Tanya Chutkan had to delay it to await a ruling by the appeals court on the immunity claim.
Back-to-back cases
Trump currently faces a series of lawsuits. He is currently on trial in New York over fraudulent financial statements that inflated the value of his real estate assets.
He maintains a substantial lead in a diminishing field of Republicans competing for the party's presidential nomination, as indicated by the polls. However, the former President faces the challenges of managing elevated expectations and adverse winter weather conditions that may impede voter turnout.
Trump's appeal of a ruling from the Colorado Supreme Court, which ruled that the 14th Amendment's insurrection clause disqualifies him from appearing on the state's ballots in the election, is also pending. As such, he cannot appear on the state's presidential primary ballot because of his involvement in the attack on the Capitol in January 2021.
Last month, a Michigan state court ruled that Trump is eligible to stay on the state's 2024 presidential primary ballot for the Republican Party after a local activist group Free Speech for People attempted to bar Trump from running for office by filing an “insurrection” lawsuit against him.
