Trump criminal trials tracker – The Washington Post
Welcome back to The Trump Trials, where more courts keep getting involved in the action. This week we’ll be reporting from the U.S. Court of Appeals for D.C. as a panel of judges hears arguments on a key question in one of the federal cases: Does presidential immunity shield Trump from being prosecuted for actions that occurred while he was in office?
We’ll dive into that question more later on.
Have questions on the upcoming trials? Email us at perry.stein@washpost.com and devlin.barrett@washpost.com and check for answers in future newsletters.
Onward …
On Tuesday, oral arguments are scheduled at 9:30 a.m. at the D.C. federal appeals court to determine if presidential immunity or double jeopardy should bar federal prosecutors from charging Trump for his actions around the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. (The audio will be streamed on the court’s YouTube channel here.)
Trump has argued that the case against him should be tossed because he was acting as president and cannot be prosecuted for actions taken in the course of his official duties, and that his 2021 impeachment acquittal by the Senate precludes criminal charges now. Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, who is overseeing the case, ruled against Trump. Now Trump is appealing her ruling.
The Supreme Court said Friday that it would decide whether Trump should be allowed on the Colorado ballot — a hugely consequential question that will shape the presidential election. Oral arguments are scheduled for Feb. 8.
Now, a recap of last week’s action.
The details: Four counts related to conspiring to obstruct the 2020 election results.
Planned trial date: March 4
What happened: The deadlines and pretrial proceedings are frozen as the appeals courts weigh Trump’s potential immunity. (This freeze is known in legal parlance as a stay, which we defined in a previous Trump Trials edition.)
Still, special counsel Jack Smith recently filed a motion asking the judge to prohibit Trump from introducing at trial any irrelevant and unreasonable evidence that might mislead or confuse the jury.
Which leads us to …
Contempt — A judge who decides a party in a case has failed to follow a court order can find them in contempt. It’s important to note that while the Trump case before Chutkan is a criminal case, his lawyers are asking that the prosecutors be held in civil contempt — which means that even if the judge agreed that prosecutors crossed a line, the likely punishment would be a fine (though people can go to jail for civil contempt). Contempt findings are how judges discipline a defendant, lawyer or other participant for not following court rules. Most judges will issue a warning before a contempt finding.
The details: Trump faces 13 state charges for allegedly trying to undo the election results in that state. Four of the 18 people charged alongside Trump have pleaded guilty.
Planned trial date: None yet
What happened last week: Mark Meadows, Trump’s former chief of staff who was charged in the case, is still on his quest to get the case against him moved to federal court — and eventually dismissed. After losing twice, he is asking all of the judges on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear the case — a type of appeal known as en banc. (Ahem, en banc was also a previous Nerd Word.)
The details: Trump faces 40 federal charges over accusations that he kept top-secret government documents at Mar-a-Lago — his home and private club — and thwarted government demands to return them.
Planned trial date: May 20
What happened: Prosecutors asked the judge to order Trump to reveal whether he plans to use an “advice of counsel” defense — claiming Trump should be found not guilty because he was truthful with his own lawyers and made a good-faith effort to follow their advice about what conduct was legal.
Trump has said he should not have to reveal yet if he plans to use that defense.
The details: 34 charges connected to a 2016 hush money payment.
Planned trial date: March 25
Last week: Nothing to report here.
Q. The Colorado and Maine decisions to bar Trump from the ballot only mention the primary election. Would Trump also be removed from the general election ballot if he becomes the Republican nominee?
A. We’re passing off this question to our colleague Patrick Marley, who has been extensively covering these ballot questions. Here’s what he said:
The two decisions apply only to the primaries, but the Colorado Supreme Court and Maine secretary of state seem all but certain to reach the same conclusion about Trump’s ability to appear on the general election ballot. Both found Trump is ineligible to serve as president under a clause of the Constitution barring insurrectionists from holding office.
And remember, it’s in the Supreme Court’s hands now. If the justices rule that Trump should be allowed on the primary ballot, then he would also be on the general election ballot.
Josh Dawsey contributed to this report.
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