An appeals court in Washington, D.C., narrowed former president Donald Trump’s gag order in his federal January 6 case, allowing him to make critical comments about special counsel Jack Smith.
A three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday largely upheld U.S. district judge Tanya Chutkan’s prior ruling, which forbade Trump from publicly criticizing potential witnesses, prosecutors, and court staff in his election-interference legal battle. The new version of the gag order, however, allows the former president to disparage Smith, who’s the lead prosecutor in the case, if he wishes.
“We agree with the district court that some aspects of Mr. Trump’s public statements pose a significant and imminent threat to the fair and orderly adjudication of the ongoing criminal proceeding, warranting a speech-constraining protective order,” the appeals court ruled. “The district court’s order, however, sweeps in more protected speech than is necessary. For that reason, we affirm the district court’s order in part and vacate it in part.”
Apart from Smith, the foreseeable witnesses, remaining prosecution counsel, and court workers are off limits to Trump and his attorneys. While the court found that the order “should not have restricted speech about the Special Counsel himself,” Trump “does not have an unlimited right to speak,” according to the court document.
The gag order was put on pause early last month until a decision could be made. The three appeals judges heard the oral arguments regarding the gag order on November 20.
“We do not allow such an order lightly,” U.S. circuit judge Patricia Millett wrote on behalf of the three-judge panel. “Mr. Trump is a former President and current candidate for the presidency, and there is a strong public interest in what he has to say. But Mr. Trump is also an indicted criminal defendant, and he must stand trial in a courtroom under the same procedures that govern all other criminal defendants. That is what the rule of law means.”
Trump is facing a federal indictment of four criminal counts for allegedly working to overturn the results of the 2020 election, in part by inciting a mob to storm the Capitol on January 6. The charges in this particular case include: a conspiracy to defraud the United States, efforts to obstruct the vote-certification proceedings, and a conspiracy to violate civil rights. Trump repeatedly denied he incited his supporters to storm the Capitol.
In his numerous legal battles, Trump has been highly critical of Smith and other officials for issuing four indictments while he’s running for the 2024 Republican nomination. Last month while the gag order was paused, Trump took the opportunity to warn Smith and other Department of Justice officials that they will be placed in mental institutions if he is reelected come next November.
Overall, Trump faces 91 criminal counts.
Trump is also facing a gag order in his New York civil-fraud trial for posting on Truth Social about the presiding judge’s law clerk, whom he claimed was Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer’s (D., N.Y.) “girlfriend.”