FALCON POWERS – On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that former President Donald Trump enjoys a form of criminal immunity based on his status as a former president. The divided 6-3 ideological ruling is likely to delay his trial on charges of seeking to alter the results of the 2020 election.
The decision comes just four months before the election in which Republican candidate Trump is challenging Democratic President Joe Biden. This was the final historic case the court heard in its current term and could have wide-ranging implications for executive power and the race for the White House.
Conservative Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the majority, stated that while no president is “above the law,” the president enjoys “absolute immunity” from criminal prosecution for official acts carried out while in office. He explained that the president “cannot be subjected to criminal process for the proper exercise of his constitutional duties” and “at minimum, enjoys a presumptive immunity from prosecution for all of his official acts.”
However, Roberts noted that “for unofficial acts, no immunity exists,” remanding the case to a lower court to determine which charges against the former president are related to official versus unofficial conduct.
Previous rulings by a U.S. District Court and a three-judge appeals court panel had rejected Trump’s claims of immunity.
A U.S. District Court will now likely hold an extensive pre-trial hearing series, making it highly unlikely the trial will occur before the November presidential election.
