WASHINGTON—Special counsel Jack Smith’s office said the Department of Justice (DOJ) has a longstanding policy not to prosecute a sitting president, in response to a query about whether it will drop its criminal cases against President-elect Donald Trump, who won the 2024 election.
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| (Left) Special counsel Jack Smith in Washington on Aug. 1, 2023. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images); (Right) Former President Donald Trump. David Dee Delgado/Getty Images |
Peter Carr, a spokesman for the special counsel’s office, declined to comment on whether the office will drop its cases but directed The Epoch Times to a 2000 memo from the DOJ Office of Legal Counsel. It states that “indictment or criminal prosecution of a sitting President would unconstitutionally undermine the capacity of the executive branch to perform its constitutionally assigned functions.”
Multiple Republicans called on the DOJ and local district attorneys to end their prosecutions of Trump after he won the presidential election on Nov. 5.
“The American people have spoken: the lawfare must end,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) wrote in a post on social media platform X. “I call on Attorney General Garland, [Manhattan District Attorney] Alvin Bragg, and [Fulton County District Attorney] Fani Willis to immediately terminate the politically motivated prosecutions of President Donald Trump.”
On Nov. 6, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) wrote on X that special counsel Jack Smith should “look forward to a new chapter” in his legal career.
“The Supreme Court substantially rejected what you were trying to do, and after tonight, it’s clear the American people are tired of lawfare. Bring these cases to an end,” Graham wrote.
[ZH: Meanwhile...]
🚨Trump's lawyer Mike Davis issues dark warning to NY AG Letitia James:
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) November 7, 2024
"I dare you to try to continue your lawfare against President Trump... listen here, sweetheart, we're not messing around this time and we will put your fatass in prison for conspiracy against rights." pic.twitter.com/FfGGxzsaq6
* * *
Former Attorney General Bill Barr, who served under Trump, told Fox News that prosecutors should “do the right” thing and end their cases against the president-elect.
“Further maneuvering on these cases in the weeks ahead would serve no legitimate purpose and only distract the country and the incoming administration from the task at hand,” Barr said. “The public interest now demands that the country unite and focus on the challenges we face at home and abroad. Attorney General Garland and all the state prosecutors should do the right thing and help the country move forward by dismissing the cases.”
He said that the U.S. electorate has “rendered their verdict on President Trump and decisively chosen him to lead the country for the next four years.”
“They did that with full knowledge of the claims against him by prosecutors around the country, and I think Attorney General Garland and the state prosecutors should respect the people’s decision and dismiss the cases against President Trump now,” Barr said.
Trump is slated to appear before a New York judge later this month to face sentencing after he was charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection to payments he made during the 2016 election. He was convicted by a jury in May. He had pleaded not guilty and denies the allegations.
However, with the election result, it’s not clear whether Trump will receive any sentencing after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that presidents should have some degree of immunity from prosecution for official acts.
It’s unclear what Judge Juan Merchan will do following the election. Merchan has already pushed back the sentencing date twice.
Trump faces charges in Fulton County, Georgia, for allegedly trying to illegally overturn the 2020 election results, although that case is currently in limbo after the president-elect and several co-defendants appealed a judge’s ruling to allow Willis to remain on the case. The Georgia Appeals Court is currently scheduled to take up a Trump appeal next year, and the case is currently on pause.
Willis, a Democrat, was elected to another term in office as Fulton County’s top prosecutor on Nov. 5, according to projections from The Associated Press.
In two federal cases brought against him, Trump faces criminal charges in Washington, brought by Smith, over his alleged activity following the 2020 election and the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol breach. A separate case that was brought by Smith in Florida over his handling of classified documents was dismissed by a federal judge earlier this year, although Smith had appealed it.
When Trump officially takes office, he could use his presidential authority to dismiss the two cases brought by Smith, who was appointed by Garland. However, he has less latitude in dealing with the cases brought in New York City and Fulton County.
In public events and on social media, Trump often has said that the various criminal cases brought against him were attempts to interfere in the 2024 election.
The Epoch Times contacted the Fulton County District Attorney’s office for comment but did not receive a reply by publication time.
Authored by Jack Phillips and Sam Dorman via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),