“The Supreme Court ruled this Monday 1is July that former President Donald Trump was entitled to some degree of immunity […]a decision that could have the effect of delaying his trial for conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election,” reports Monday 1is July The New York Times.
The six conservative judges (out of nine in total) considered “that Trump was entitled to immunity from prosecution for his official acts as president, but that there was a crucial distinction between his official acts and his private behavior,” summarizes the newspaper. “The case will go to a lower court, which will decide whether the actions Trump is accused of fall within the official or private sphere.”
The president of the United States “is not above the law”, but he “should not be prosecuted for the exercise of his essential constitutional powers and is entitled, at a minimum, to a presumption of judicial immunity for all his official acts,” wrote the President of the Supreme Court, on behalf of the conservative majority.
The judges took their time
“The Supreme Court itself dismissed some of the charges against Trump, particularly regarding his alleged attempt to use the Justice Department” in order to challenge and reverse the outcome of the election, it said The Wall Street Journal. She considered that these were official acts for which the former president had authority. “absolute immunity”, claimed by Donald Trump. The Supreme Court is not ruling on other allegations, the newspaper adds.
“It is not yet clear how much this decision will delay the trial, but the chances of it being held before the presidential election [du 5 novembre] seem more and more reduced. If Trump wins, he could order the Justice Department to drop the charges,” explains the center-left daily, noting that the Supreme Court was slow to rule on this immunity claimed by Donald Trump, while special prosecutor Jack Smith, who is bringing the January 6 case, had requested it in December.
The highest court in the country, where three judges were appointed by Trump himself, had, in 2024, ruled more quickly on two other cases linked to January 6. In March, she rejected attempts by several states to declare him ineligible. Last Friday, June 28, she considered that some of the charges against Capitol rioters, and against Trump himself, were unfounded.
