Supreme Court “creates scope” for upcoming appeals against Donald Trump: lawyer

The Supreme Court is leaving a gap in its schedule to address Trump-related challenges this term, a former prosecutor said.

That would include the former president’s voter fraud case in Washington, D.C., and challenges to the results of the 2024 election if Trump loses, wrote Joyce Vance.

Trump was indicted on four counts in Washington, DC for allegedly working to overturn the results of the 2020 election in the lead-up to the riots at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. He pleaded not guilty and said the case was part of a political witch hunt.

As Vance gave an overview of the court’s upcoming cases on her legal blog “Civil Discourse” on Sunday, she wrote that there was clearly a gap in the Supreme Court’s schedule to accommodate Trump appeals.

“The court’s files are tighter than usual – they save space. “Even with the addition of fifteen cases late last week after the court’s lengthy conference in which some 2,000 petitions and other requests were evaluated, there is still room in the court’s calendar for what they need to know is coming,” Vance added added.

Vance wrote that she believes the possible challenges for Trump include “the second round of appeals against presidential immunity, which he hopes will prevent him from facing a jury in Washington, D.C.”

This concerns Trump’s election fraud case in Washington, DC. The Supreme Court ruled on July 1 that the Republican presidential candidate enjoys broad immunity from prosecution. Prosecutor Jack Smith then prepared a completely new indictment and published his evidence against Trump on October 2nd.

Vance wrote that she believes that depending on how Washington, D.C. Judge Tanya Chutkan handles the new indictment, both sides will likely accept a Supreme Court challenge.

Vance added that other potential Trump-related challenges before the Supreme Court include “an appeal of the Eleventh Circuit’s decision to dismiss Judge Cannon’s secret documents indictment.”

This is related to Judge Aileen Cannon’s July ruling in which she dismissed all charges against Trump for hoarding presidential files at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Newsweek sought emailed comment from Trump’s lawyer and Cannon’s office on Monday.

Cannon ruled that Prosecutor Smith was unlawfully appointed as special prosecutor in the case and was therefore invalid. He is challenging her decision in a federal appeals court in Florida.

Trump faced 40 federal charges in Cannon’s court over his alleged handling of sensitive materials seized from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, after he left the White House in January 2021. He was also accused of obstructing federal authorities’ efforts to retrieve them. The Republican presidential candidate had pleaded not guilty and said the case was also part of a political witch hunt.

There are also “the inevitable post-election challenges that Trump will face if he loses the presidential election,” Vance wrote.