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Accused of meddling in the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump sought presidential immunity. He announced that he intends to appeal against the decision handed down on Tuesday.
A federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday (Feb 6) that Donald Trump is not immune from charges that he conspired to overturn his 2020 election loss, bringing the former US president closer to an unprecedented criminal trial. A three-judge panel of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals rejected Donald Trump’s argument that he could not be prosecuted because the charges related to his official duties as president.
The former president has already announced that he intends to appeal the decision, which rejects his attempt to avoid trial for undermining American democracy and the transmission of power, even as he strengthens his position as the favorite for the Republican nomination in the presidential election. “With all due respect, President Trump disagrees with the court’s decision and will appeal.”Its spokesperson Steven Cheung announced.
Donald Trump’s lawyers argued that former presidents enjoy broad legal protections and cannot be prosecuted for official acts unless they are first impeached by the House of Representatives and removed from office by the Senate.
2020 election interference
During his tenure, Donald Trump was twice targeted by impeachment proceedings by the House of Representatives, but each time, Senate Republicans voted enough to acquit him of the charges against him.
The indictment, brought by special counsel Jack Smith, accuses Trump of using false claims of election fraud to pressure state lawmakers, Justice Department officials and then-Vice President Mike Pence to thwart the certification of election results. It is one of four criminal cases against Donald Trump and one of two charges of meddling in the 2020 election.
Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to four counts and accused prosecutors of trying to damage his campaign for political reasons. The immunity argument was rejected by District Judge Tanya Chutkan, allowing Donald Trump to appeal.
Even if Donald Trump’s plea is not accepted by the courts, the appeal is likely to achieve its goal of delaying the trial scheduled for March 4 and possibly pushing it back to after the November election. The case is on hold while Donald Trump appeals. If Donald Trump wins the election, he could pardon himself or order the Justice Department to close the case.
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