Special Counsel seeks US Supreme Court review on Trump's Presidential immunity

Special Counsel John “Jack” Smith asked the US Supreme Court to decide on a fast-track basis whether Donald Trump is entitled to absolute presidential immunity against criminal charges over his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

In a high court filing Monday, Smith asked the justices to directly review a federal trial judge’s refusal to toss out the indictment against Trump, bypassing the appeals court stage. He told the justices that “it is of imperative public importance” they resolve the issue as quickly as possible.

Smith said he was simultaneously asking a federal appeals court to expedite its handling of Trump’s appeal of US District Judge Tanya Chutkan’s ruling. Smith said he was pursuing both tracks to ensure the high court can rule before the end of its term, normally in late June.

The filing marks the first time the Supreme Court has been asked to intervene in one of the pending criminal prosecutions against Trump.

Smith said Trump’s appeal on the immunity issue has suspended the scheduled March 4 start date for trial.

In her Dec. 1 ruling, Chutkan wrote that Trump’s “four-year service as Commander in Chief did not bestow on him the divine right of kings to evade the criminal accountability that governs his fellow citizens.”

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