Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked a judge to dismiss the federal election interference case against Donald Trump, the future president of the United States.
In new documents filed Monday, Smith told the judge the case should be closed because of the Justice Department’s policy prohibiting the prosecution of a sitting president.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to President Joe Biden on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and other charges related to his efforts to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss.
“As a result of the election held on November 5, 2024, defendant Donald J. Trump will be inaugurated as President on January 20, 2025,” Smith wrote in the new filing. “It has long been the Department of Justice’s position that the U.S. Constitution prohibits federal prosecution and subsequent criminal prosecution of a sitting president.”
“This finding is not based on the merits or strength of the case against the defendant,” Smith added in the six-page filing.
The request to dismiss Trump’s election overthrow case marks the end of a long legal saga after Smith was forced to refile the charges against the president based on a Supreme Court ruling that found Trump had partial immunity from prosecution.
Trump’s return to the White House has embroiled several criminal cases against him.
His sentencing for a criminal conviction in New York state has been postponed indefinitely, and another federal case involving his handling of classified documents will likely be dismissed as he takes office.
Smith’s election overturn lawsuit against Trump also faced difficulties. Prosecutors were forced to amend the charges against the former president after the Supreme Court ruled in July that Trump had immunity from prosecution for “official acts” that occurred while he was in the White House.
Smith argued in the amended indictment that Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results were not official acts because they were related to his campaign.
After Trump won the 2024 election this month, Smith began taking steps to close the election interference and classified documents cases. In the case, Trump was accused of storing sensitive files at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and obstructing government activities. Search for them.
Trump promised to remove Smith as soon as he took office.
“It’s really easy. I would fire him in two seconds,” he told a conservative radio host earlier this month.
