US Supreme Court expected to rule on Trump immunity case as end of term nears – KABC-TV
WATCH LIVE
The ruling will affect special counsel Jack Smith’s Jan. 6 case against Trump.
The Supreme Court on Monday rejected Donald Trump's sweeping claim of "absolute" immunity from criminal prosecution in his federal election subversion case, but said former presidents are entitled to some protections for "official" acts.
The blockbuster decision split the court along ideological lines. The 6-3 opinion was delivered by Chief Justice John Roberts.
"The President is not above the law," the opinion read. "But under our system of separated powers, the President may not be prosecuted for exercising his core constitutional powers, and he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for his official acts. That immunity applies equally to all occupants of the Oval Office."
But Roberts also noted that, "Trump asserts a far broader immunity than the limited one we have recognized."
The ruling will affect whether Trump faces a federal trial this year on four felony counts brought by special counsel Jack Smith, including conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and obstruction of an official proceeding, for his attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.
The justices are sending the case back to the trial court to determine what acts alleged in Smith's indictment constitute official duties that could be protected from liability and which are not. Such a delay is a win for Trump, who has sought to push his prosecutions past the November election.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, writing in dissent, said the majority's decision "reshapes the institution of the presidency."
"It makes a mockery of the principle, foundational to our Constitution and system of Government, that no man is above the law," she wrote. Sotomayor was joined in her dissent by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
Former NASA engineer accused of secretly recording sex with women
ABC7's Brianna Ruffalo announces engagement to actor Josh Lucas
Steve Bannon reports to prison for contempt of Congress sentence