Sexual assault, conspiracy, fraud… Does Donald Trump still risk prison? – rts.ch

Donald Trump won the presidential elections on November 5 and will take office on Monday. Prosecuted for conspiracy against the government, found responsible for sexual assault, fraud and defamation, the billionaire becomes the first convicted criminal elected president of the United States. He also becomes the first president to be sworn in with legal proceedings still pending.

However, the Republican returns to the White House… but risks prison after his mandate. At least in theory. Because in fact, this extraordinary election complicates the task of judges and prosecutors against whom Trump promised to wage war upon his inauguration.

Charged in six court cases

“Remove” the Democrats from power, objective achieved for Donald Trump who does not intend to stop there. He has promised to fire everyone who filed cases against him and even wants to sue some judges. But above all, it has more extensive immunity.

In the United States, presidential immunity “protects the president from legal proceedings for acts committed in the context of his presidential functions during his mandate”, explains Mathilde Philip, professor of public law at the University of Lyon 3. But the The Supreme Court’s judgment of July 1, 2024 determined that this protection could “continue even after his mandate” depending on the case.

At the federal level, Donald Trump is criminally charged for two cases: first, for conspiring against the government during the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. In theory, he risks ending his life in prison for this charge. And without his election, he would have been convicted, according to a report from special prosecutor Jack Smith released on January 14.

>> Lire : Without his election, Donald Trump would have been doomed, report says

Then he was charged with withholding classified documents and faced 10 to 20 years in prison.

In the state of Georgia, he is also facing criminal charges for electoral fraud during the 2020 elections: he risks 5 to 20 years in prison.

Already sentenced

In addition to these ongoing proceedings, there are also cases where Trump has already been convicted. In New York State, Donald Trump was convicted in three cases. In the Stormy Daniels case: tried criminally, he is accused of falsifying accounts during the 2016 presidential campaign and of concealed payments for having bought the silence of a porn actress who said she had had sexual relations with him. He theoretically risked up to four years in prison.

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In the E. Jean Carroll affair, the new American president was ordered by a civil court to pay nearly $90 million for sexual assault and defamation. Finally, in the Trump Organization affair, he is accused of overvaluing his real estate and was fined $175 million in civil proceedings.

For these three convictions, Donald Trump appealed. For current cases, they are suspended at least during his mandate, but from 2029, they could be relaunched. Also in theory. Because the new president and his allies have a whole range of strategies that can change the situation between now and then.

His strategies for avoiding convictions

First, after his term in office, Donald Trump will be 82 years old. Enduring a trial or a sentence could be called into question depending on his state of health. Then, once invested, he can request an end to the proceedings against him and pardon his supporters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021. He can also grant himself a presidential pardon when it comes to crimes against the United States. And above all, Trump surrounds himself with his supporters: he appointed Pam Bondy, a lawyer very close to the billionaire who defended him in 2020, as head of the Ministry of Justice.

As a result, for the assault on the Capitol and for the withholding of classified documents, the charges were dropped. For the Georgia election fraud case, his arrival at the White House could result in the case being frozen indefinitely.

But what about the crimes Donald Trump was convicted of before his election? In the Stormy Daniels case, the judge rejected Trump’s request to dismiss the case: he was found guilty, but the judge ultimately decided to exempt him from sentence a few days before the inauguration. Finally, in the case against E. Jean Carroll and that of the Trump Organization, Donald Trump’s appeals are still pending.

In summary, there is little risk that Donald Trump will go to prison after his term. The billionaire enjoys strong support, convinced that he is the target of a legal conspiracy. “However, there remains the possibility of impeachment, which would make it possible to cancel his immunity and try him before the ordinary courts,” adds Mathilde Philip.

Florise Vaubien