Federal court ruling

Judge Unseals Jack Smith's 165-Page Immunity Motion Alleging Trump "Resorted to Crimes" to Overturn 2020 Election

Oct 2, 2024, 08:06 PM

On Wednesday, Judge Tanya Chutkan unsealed Special Counsel Jack Smith's 165-page redacted immunity motion in the federal January 6 case against former President Donald Trump. The motion outlines new details alleging that Trump "resorted to crimes" to try to stay in office after losing the 2020 presidential election. Prosecutors contend that Trump and his co-conspirators launched increasingly desperate plans to overturn legitimate election results in seven states, with the throughline of these efforts being deceit through knowingly false claims of election fraud. The filing asserts that Trump intentionally lied to the public, state election officials, and his own vice president, and that he told advisers he planned to declare victory before all ballots were counted if preliminary results showed him ahead. Additionally, the motion describes how Trump and his allies sought to create chaos at polling places, including an instance where a campaign employee encouraged a colleague to "make them riot" during a vote count in Detroit. Prosecutors argue that Trump's actions were taken in his capacity as a candidate, not as president, and therefore he is not entitled to presidential immunity from prosecution in this case.