The defense argues that Trump cannot be held responsible because he is a former president, AFP
Published on December 30, 2023 at 10:15 p.m
Special US Attorney Jack Smith has suggested that a US federal appeals court reject former President Donald Trump's immunity claims in the Capitol invasion case.
For Smith, Trump's argument that he cannot be held responsible for crimes during his term as president is a “threat to the country's democratic and constitutional foundations.”
The request from Smith's team came ahead of a meeting scheduled for January on whether a former president can be prosecuted for acts he committed in the White House.
Trump's lawyers believe the appeals court should order the case dismissed on the grounds that, as a former president, he is exempt from prosecution for actions that fall within his official duties as president.
Smith's team said that such immunity does not exist in the Constitution or case law and that the actions Trump took to remain in power were not part of the official responsibilities of a president anyway.
The indictment alleges that Trump conspired to disrupt the counting of electoral votes in Congress on January 6, 2021, as rioters stormed the US Capitol.
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