US Supreme Court rejects Jack Smith's request to fast-track Donald Trump's immunity case
Donald Trump has any immunity from federal prosecution for alleged crimes he committed while in office, CNN reported.
The court did not explain its reasoning and there were no noted dissents.
The court's decision comes as a major blow to Smith, who made an extraordinary gamble when he asked the justices to take the rare step of skipping a federal appeals court and quickly deciding a fundamental issue in his election subversion criminal case against Trump.
As per CNN, both sides will still have the option of appealing an eventual ruling by the DC Circuit Court of Appeals up to the high court, but the court's move is a major victory for Trump, whose strategy of delay in the criminal case included mounting a protracted fight over the immunity question, which must be settled before his case goes to trial.
An expedited review of the issue is already underway at the DC Circuit, which has scheduled oral arguments for January 9. The election subversion trial is currently set to begin in March.
According to CNN, Professor at the University of Texas School of Law Steve Vladeck said: «The real question is what happens then. Assuming the court of appeals rejects Trump's claim, will it keep the trial on hold pending further review from the Supreme Court, or will it allow the trial to go forward and force Trump to seek a stay from the Supreme Court? It's still possible that the trial begins on March 4, but the Supreme Court's apparent willingness to let the D.C. Circuit go first makes it at least somewhat — and perhaps significantly — less likely.»
In urging the court to not take the case, Trump's attorneys argued the special counsel was trying to «rush to decide
