Jack Smith had hinted at this, but now it’s official: his office has filed an official motion to dismiss the D.C. case of election interference against President-elect Donald Trump. Below you can read the full motion.
Smith’s Office explained in the six-page document filed on Monday with the U.S. District Court:
The Department of Justice has maintained for many years that the United States Constitution prohibits federal indictment of a President and criminal prosecution of him. The Department of Justice and the nation have never been in this situation before when a federal criminal case against a citizen was already underway and an indictment had been returned by the grand jury. In this unique situation, the Special Counsel’s Office sought the advice of the Department’s Office of Legal Counsel. The OLC’s interpretation of constitutional issues such as the ones raised here has a binding effect on Department prosecutors. The Department determined after careful consideration that OLC’s previous opinions regarding the Constitution’s ban on federal indictment of and prosecution against a President apply to this case and as a consequence, this prosecution must also be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated.
The Government continues by stating that the policy is applicable regardless of “the severity of the crimes, the strength or Government’s evidence, or the merits” of the prosecution and that it will continue to “fully support” these merits.
The motion describes the history of the policy and calls for the dismissal without prejudice of the superseding charge. The fact that it is without prejudice does not mean the case cannot be refiled later. The motion explains:
The Department believes that the Constitution demands that this case be dismissed before the defendant’s inauguration. The Constitution does require dismissal, but not with prejudice, in this case, because of the temporary immunity granted to a President. Cf. id. At 255, “immunity for the prosecution of a president in office would not prevent such prosecutions once the term is over, or he has been removed from office through resignation or impeachment”.
One can assume that Judge Tanya Chutkan would dismiss the case and it will not be heard, at least until the end of Trump’s presidency. I think we’ll also see this in the Florida classified documents appeal (currently on appeal), i.e. that the DOJ drops its appeal, though no formal motion was filed at the time of writing.
Steven Cheung, Trump’s Communications Director, released the following statement after hearing of the dismissal.
“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. 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.”
