Special counsel Jack Smith filed a motion in D.C. District Court to drop the Jan. 6 case against President-elect Donald Trump with Judge Tanya Chutkan.
“As a result of the election held on November 5, 2024, the defendant, Donald J. Trump, will be inaugurated as President on January 20, 2025,” Smith’s motion said.
“It has long been the position of the Department of Justice that the United States Constitution forbids the federal indictment and subsequent criminal prosecution of a sitting President. But the Department and the country have never faced the circumstance here, where a federal indictment against a private citizen has been returned by a grand jury and a criminal prosecution is already underway when the defendant is elected President.”
Smith first secured a grand jury indictment in the election interference case 16 months ago.
A federal court in Florida previously ruled that Smith lacked standing to bring the classified documents case against Trump