Court rules Donald Trump not immune to Jan. 6 prosecution

A US appeals court ruled Tuesday that former President Donald Trump can face trial on charges of plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. 

The decision rejects Trump's claim that as a former president, he cannot cannot face criminal charges for conduct related to official responsibilities during his presidency. 

Trump is charged with trying to subvert the results of the 2020 US presidential election while in the White House in the run-up to January 6, when a mob of his supporters stormed the US Capitol as lawmakers were certifying the victory of Joe Biden. 

Trump and his team have argued that he was acting in an official capacity as he sought to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

What did the court say?

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said Tuesday that Trump's immunity claim was "unsupported by precedent, history or the text and structure of the Constitution."

The panel wrote that the "interest in criminal accountability" held by the Executive Branch of the US government "outweighs the potential risks" of such accountability hampering presidential action and "permitting vexatious litigation."

"For the purpose of this criminal case, former President Trump has become citizen Trump, with all of the defenses of any other criminal defendant," the panel wrote. 

However, Tuesday's decision is not the final blow for Trump, as he is expected to continue appealing his claims of executive immunity to the US Supreme Court.

In December, the Supreme Court refused to rule on Trump's immunity claims, deferring to the lower appeals court. 

All eyes on trial date

The timing of if or when Trump will stand trial in the election interference case has huge political ramifications.

Trump is the Republican frontrunner for the 2024 US presidential elections, and the protracted appeals process could push any trial date past election day in November.

If Trump wins the presidency, he could potentially use could his position to order a new attorney general to dismiss the federal cases or try to pardon himself.

The trial was originally set for March, but it was postponed last week due to the appeals process, and the judge didn't immediately set a new date.

Trump also faces three other criminal prosecutions. In Florida he is being charged with illegally retaining classified documents at this Mar-a-lago estate. In Georgia, Trump is being charged with conspiring to subvert the 2020 election in the state.

And in New York he is facing charges in connection to hush money payments made to a porn actress. He is also being sued for fraud in a New York civil case.

wmr/msh (AFP, AP, Reuters)