Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump speaks on the phone as he watches play in the final round of LIV Golf Miami, at Trump National Doral Golf Club, Sunday, April 7, 2024, in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
The trial is on hold until the Supreme Court rules on Trump's assertion that he should be immune from prosecution because the conduct he is accused of constituted official acts of the president. Both the judge presiding over the case, Tanya Chutkan, and a three-judge federal appellate panel in Washington have forcefully rejected that claim.
Trump appealed, and the Supreme Court agreed to hear his argument. In a brief, Trump's legal team argued a denial of his claims would "incapacitate every future president with de facto blackmail and extortion while in office," and would create "post-office trauma at the hands of political opponents."
The Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. Oral arguments for Trump's immunity claims will be held on April 25. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
They argued that the Framers of the Constitution "never endorsed criminal immunity for a former President" and said all former presidents have known they could be criminally prosecuted for acts committed while in office, even after leaving the government.
Prosecutors also said that even if the Supreme Court were to recognize some immunity for a president’s official acts, the justices should nonetheless permit the case to move forward because much of the indictment is centered on Trump’s private conduct.
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Smith and his team suggested the court could rule narrowly against Trump without setting a broad precedent that could apply to other cases.
"A holding that petitioner has no immunity from the alleged crimes would suffice to resolve this case, leaving potentially more difficult questions that might arise on different facts for decision if they are ever presented," they said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Chris Pandolfo is a writer for Fox News Digital. Send tips to chris.pandolfo@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @ChrisCPandolfo.
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