(RepublicanView.org) – US District Judge Aileen Cannon has dismissed the charges of mishandling classified documents against Donald Trump. The Florida Judge ruled that Special Counsel Jack Smith’s appointment to the case was unconstitutional as it violated the Appointments Clause. Trump celebrated the significant victory that followed a Supreme Court decision granting him prosecutorial immunity for acts carried out in the course of his Presidential duties.
On his Truth Social media account, Trump claimed that the Special Counsel had “worked with everyone to take me down.”
The Appointments Clause states that officers of the United States are appointed by the President with the Senate’s consent, but the Court noted that Jack Smith had never been approved by the Senate and therefore his prosecution of the former President must be dropped.
Smith has since announced that he intends to appeal the ruling, saying the decision deviates from the “uniform conclusion of all previous courts.” Legal experts say the appeals process will likely extend far beyond November’s Presidential election, which the former President had hoped for. If re-elected to the White House, Trump will be able to instruct the Attorney General to dismiss the case, as well as other pending federal charges.
Smith is also prosecuting Trump for his alleged involvement in the events of January 6. The Supreme Court returned that case to US District Judge Tanya Chutkan, where she will determine which parts of the federal indictment can be prosecuted in the wake of its ruling that Trump enjoys some Presidential immunity.
In Trump’s other legal battles, he awaits sentencing following his New York conviction for falsifying documents, while his attorneys argue the verdict should be overturned thanks to the Supreme Court decision. In Georgia, the former President’s criminal charges are on hold as an appeals court decides if District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified from the case.
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