Trump is not immune from prosecution for bid to subvert the 2020 election, appeals court rules

Former President Donald Trump — and indeed any other former president — may be prosecuted for alleged crimes they committed while in office, a federal appeals court panel ruled Friday.

The unanimous 57-page decision from a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals is a major win for special counsel Jack Smith — but is likely to trigger another appeal from Trump, perhaps to the Supreme Court.

“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 concluded. “But any executive immunity that may have protected him while he served as President no longer protects him against this prosecution.”

The ruling affirms U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan’s historic conclusion that former presidents may be prosecuted for crimes they committed in office, even if those alleged crimes arguably related to their official duties as president. Trump had argued that former presidents could not be prosecuted for such actions without first being impeached and convicted by Congress.