U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts has given prosecutors a week to respond to former President Donald Trump’s request to pause his federal criminal election-subversion trial while he seeks to have the case dismissed, citing presidential immunity.
According to a brief docket entry from the court on Tuesday morning, Politico noted that Special Counsel Jack Smith has until next Tuesday at 5 p.m. to respond to the emergency application filed by Trump’s attorneys at the high court on Monday.
Last week, a federal appeals court in Washington, comprising three judges, unanimously rejected Trump’s sweeping claim of immunity. However, the judges opted not to remand the case to a lower court for trial until the Supreme Court addresses Trump’s plea for emergency relief.
Smith has already appealed to the courts to resolve the immunity dispute quickly in order to allow Trump’s trial in Washington, D.C., originally set for March 4, to commence later this year.
In a bid for expedited resolution, the special counsel urged the Supreme Court to weigh the immunity issue in December, preceding the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals’ review. Nevertheless, the justices declined the request.
“This Court’s immediate review of that question is the only way to achieve its timely and definitive resolution,” Smith wrote in the December filing. “The Nation has a compelling interest in a decision on [Trump’s] claim of immunity from these charges — and if they are to be tried, a resolution by conviction or acquittal, without undue delay.”
Smith is likely to oppose Trump’s plea to pause the trial court’s proceedings as he pursues further petitions with both the Supreme Court and the full 11-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit for relief. Trump is hoping that those courts will rule that unless impeached and convicted by Congress, former presidents cannot be prosecuted for actions linked to their tenure in office.
Smith can reply to Trump’s most recent high court filing, which was widely expected, and essentially restates the points his lawyers have made before, without having to wait until next Tuesday.
