With Donald Trump re-elected President of the United States, what future for the legal investigations targeting him?

UNITED STATES – Almost ideal scenario for the future 47th American president. Knowing that a long criminal record has no impact on the eligibility of a candidate for the American presidential election, Donald Trump moved forward relatively calmly before the vote on Tuesday, November 5. Even if he risked losing big if he failed.

Now elected for a second term, what does he risk regarding his legal affairs? In fact, it all depends on the nature of the charges that still weigh against the first president in the history of the United States to be criminally convicted. In any case, it should logically escape some of them. He can also thank the Supreme Court on this point.

Almost absolute immunity

Indeed, in the case of the assault on the Capitol, Donald Trump will be able to benefit from the extension of presidential immunity, decided by the Supreme Court this summer. The 45th and now 47th President of the United States had in fact contacted the body – with a conservative majority – to obtain total immunity in the context of this investigation which is still ongoing. What had been granted to him.

The Supreme Court then distinguished several types of acts. Those linked to the presidential function, who therefore benefit from absolute immunity, the Court having considered that a president “is entitled to at least a presumption of immunity for his official acts.” And those related to his unofficial actions, where criminal charges can still be filed against Donald Trump, despite his election.

It remains to be seen in which category to classify the various cases involving Donald Trump. “ It will be necessary to determine whether the act in question, for example the speech given at the White House on January 6, or the telephone call to the election official of Georgia to ask him to find 11,780 votes, falls within the official function of the president or if it is a private act », Underlined for Public Senate the lawyer Anne Deysigne.

Trial postponements in spades

For the case of hidden payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels, tried at the federal level and in which he was found guilty, there is little doubt that it will fall under the ” unofficial acts “. At the material time, Donald Trump was in fact a candidate in the 2016 election. The pronouncement of this sentence, for which he risks up to four years in prison, must be known on November 26, but could be postponed until the end of his mandate, as reported by CNN.

The hypothesis that Judge Juan Merchan imposes a prison sentence on him, regarding a first criminal conviction, now appears highly improbable in the face of the insurmountable practical difficulties that the incarceration of an elected president and then president in office would raise, according to experts interviewed by AFP.

As for his attempt to reverse the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, it will depend on the federal justice system in that state. For having asked the Georgia Secretary of State to find the missing votes to get elected in 2020, he was indicted three years later, but remains for the moment awaiting trial. However, since he was president at the material time, he should benefit from absolute immunity in this case, until the end of his mandate in 2029.

As for the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, it's the same thing, since he was still president. A trial was expected for 2025, but this should no longer be the case with his status as the new tenant of the White House as of January 20, the day of his inauguration. NBC also emphasizes that the policy of the American Department of Justice is historically cautious about the idea of ​​prosecuting a sitting head of state. The risk of one or more trials during his mandate is therefore highly improbable.

Same case for the affair of the confidential documents that Donald Trump is accused of having taken to his residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. The proceedings are currently under appeal after they were quashed by Justice Aileen Cannon on July 15, on the grounds that the appointment of the special prosecutor in the case and the funding of his work violated sections of the Constitution relating to appointments and expenses.

The hypothesis of a self-pardon procedure (which has never happened in the United States) should not be excluded, since Donald Trump will have the legal right to do so, for matters falling under federal authority only. . The next president could also appoint a new Justice Minister who would fire Jack Smith, the special prosecutor in charge of the two federal proceedings, whom he has already threatened to “turn in two seconds” upon coming to power.

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