Chutkan Presses Pause: Trump Federal Election Case Stayed Pending Appeal

Susie Moore reporting for RedState 

There's been a flurry of recent activity surrounding the various court cases involving former President Donald Trump, but the Pause button just got pressed on one of them. 

On December 1, Judge Tanya Chutkan denied Trump's Motion to Dismiss in the election interference case pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Chutkan ruled that Trump's claim of presidential immunity did not shield him from prosecution in the federal election case, which is currently set for trial in March of 2024. Trump filed a Notice of Appeal on that ruling on December 7, asking the D.C. Circuit to review the decision. 

Then, on Monday, Special Counsel Jack Smith leapfrogged the case to the United States Supreme Court, asking the high court to step in and provide an expedited ruling on the immunity issue in a bid to allow the case to proceed as quickly as possible. The Court agreed to fast-track consideration of whether or not to hear the matter, asking Trump's team to file a response to Smith's request by December 20. 

On Wednesday, Judge Chutkan issued an order temporarily staying the proceedings in the underlying case pending resolution of the appeal. 

In the order, Chutkan stated: 

As the D.C. Circuit recently made clear, a former President’s absolute immunity would constitute “an entitlement not to stand trial or face the other burdens of litigation,” such as discovery obligations. Blassingame v. Trump, No. 22-5069, 2023 WL 8291481, at *22 (D.C.Cir. Dec. 1, 2023) (citation omitted). Thus, because Defendant has appealed this court’s denial of that immunity, “whether the litigation may go forward in the district court is precisely what the court of appeals must decide.” Coinbase, 599 U.S. at 741 (quotation omitted). Consequently, the court agrees with both parties that Defendant’s appeal automatically stays any further proceedings that would move this case towards trial or impose additional burdens of litigation on Defendant. Motion at 1; Gvt.’s Opp’n to Def.’s Mot. to Stay Proceedings Pending Appeal at 3, ECF No. 182. Accordingly, and for clarity, the court hereby STAYS the deadlines and proceedings scheduled by its Pretrial Order, as amended. See ECF No. 39; see also Def.’sReply in Supp. of Mot. to Stay Proceedings Pending Appeal at 3, ECF No. 185 (“Reply”).

While Judge Chutkan's order places a pause on the proceedings, she retains jurisdiction over some of the procedural issues/rulings she has already made, such as the gag order and conditions of the former president's release. However, she also notes that if Trump were to ask the reviewing court to "take temporary jurisdiction over the enforcement of those measures, and that court agrees to do so, this court of course will be bound by that decision."

While we await the Supreme Court ruling as to whether it will take up the immunity issue, the high court did hand Trump a bit of a gift earlier on Wednesday when it agreed to take up the appeal of a January 6th defendant regarding the scope of the statute under which the obstruction charge was brought. A ruling on that issue could also have a significant bearing on Trump's federal election case, as two of the counts brought against him in the case are pursuant to that statutory provision. 

As I noted, that's a flurry of activity in rather short order, but the nutshell of it is this: The federal election case is currently on hold while several of the issues get sorted out by the appellate courts. For now, the March trial setting remains, though that is obviously subject to change depending on how things shake out — and how quickly — at the Supreme Court.