In the criminal case against former US President Donald Trump for alleged conspiracy against the 2020 election, the special investigator has filed a revised version of the indictment. In the document published on Tuesday, special investigator Jack Smith takes into account the US Supreme Court’s decision in July on partial immunity for presidents. However, the newly formulated indictment contains the same charges as the previous version from August 2023. A trial before the presidential election in November is not expected.
In a response on his online network Truth Social, Trump, who is running again in the presidential election in November, described the revised charges as an “act of desperation” and part of a “witch hunt” against him. They must be dismissed. The proceedings before a federal court in Washington concern, among other things, Trump’s role in the storming of the Capitol in January 2021.
The Justice Department said the revised indictment reflects “the prosecution’s willingness to respect and implement the Supreme Court’s conclusions and instructions.” However, Smith maintains his core allegation that Trump was determined to “stay in power” despite his 2020 election loss to current President Joe Biden and attempted to retroactively overturn the election result.
At the beginning of July, at Trump’s request, the Supreme Court granted the US president extensive immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts – this immunity also exists after they leave office. However, this protection does not apply to acts classified as private. In the election conspiracy case against Trump, federal judge Tanya Chutkan must now decide which of Trump’s actions surrounding the election were part of his official duties and which were not.
In the revised indictment, Smith maintains all four previous charges against Trump: conspiracy to defraud the United States, obstruction of an official proceeding, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy to violate the right of citizens to vote. Two of the charges carry prison sentences of up to 20 years.
The indictment accuses Trump, among other things, of trying to prevent the certification of Biden’s election victory by the US Congress. The Capitol was stormed by fanatical Trump supporters on January 6, 2021, when this certification procedure was taking place there. Previously, in a speech, Trump had incited his supporters with the unfounded accusation that Biden’s election victory was the result of fraud.
The new version of the indictment is 36 pages long, nine pages less than the previous one. Content potentially affected by the immunity decision has been removed, including references to communications between Trump and Justice Department employees at the time.
Since distinguishing between Trump’s official and private actions is a complicated matter, a trial is not expected to begin before the election on November 5. This delay alone is a major success for Trump. If he returns to the White House, he could instruct the Justice Department to drop the charges.
Trump is still facing further criminal proceedings. The immunity decision also has potential implications for his trial in the state of Georgia, which also involves allegations of attempted election manipulation. There is no date yet for the start of the trial in this case either.
In another case, Trump was found guilty by a New York jury at the end of May of falsifying business documents to cover up a hush money payment to former porn actress Stormy Daniels. Trump is thus the first former US president in history to be convicted of a criminal offense.
His sentence in this case has not yet been announced, with a possible date of September 18. However, Trump’s lawyers have requested that the guilty verdict be overturned as a consequence of the immunity decision.
