The Justice Department is asking for more time to review the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling that gave former President Donald Trump broad immunity from prosecution, further delaying the federal election interference case.
Lawyers for special counsel Jack Smith wrote to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan ahead of Friday’s deadline, asking for more time to develop an “informed proposal” on next steps in the four-count case against Trump.
Prosecutors said they had consulted with other parts of the Justice Department but needed more time to finalize their position. They proposed providing an update to the court by August 30.
Trump’s defense attorneys did not object to the delay, according to the filing Thursday evening.
If the judge grants the request, the pretrial hearing in the case would be delayed well into September. Prosecutions of the former president were on hold for eight months while higher courts considered Trump’s request for immunity for his actions during his tenure in the White House.
In the case, Trump is accused of conspiring to defraud the United States and depriving millions of voters of the right to have their ballots counted in the 2020 election. There is now no chance that the case will go to trial before Election Day in November. Trump has pleaded not guilty.
If Trump recaptures the White House, he could order the Justice Department to drop the charges against him, which accuse him of illegal acts that culminated in the violence at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
More than 140 police officers were injured that day. The Ministry of Justice described the incident as the largest mass casualty incident in police history.
