supreme court refused Tuesday It will hear former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows' appeal to have criminal charges in Georgia related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election transferred to federal court.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) has indicted Meadows, President-elect Trump and more than a dozen others on charges of illegally trying to overturn President Biden's 2020 victory in Georgia.
The refusal to hear Meadows' plea to move the court represents a victory for Willis, who has been trying to keep the defendants for a one-time trial in state court.
But Trump's election as president complicated that goal. Trump's lawyers are expected to argue that the Constitution prohibits the prosecution from proceeding while Trump is in the White House.
It remains unclear how the suspension will affect Trump's allies who were indicted along with the former president. Trial proceedings have already been suspended indefinitely as some defendants seek appeals over Willis' past romantic relationship with the case's top prosecutor, who has since resigned. .
In his appeal to the Supreme Court, Meadows cited a provision that allows criminal prosecutions to be moved to federal court in cases involving acts committed by federal employees “in accordance with the color of their office.” Mr. Meadows suggested he was gambling to claim immunity from the charges.
Lower courts rejected Meadows' argument that he was acting in his capacity as White House chief of staff, and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals further held that the protections did not extend to former employees rather than current employees. handed down the verdict.
Meadows' attorney, veteran conservative Supreme Court Justice Paul Clement, said the decision contradicted the proposition behind the court's landmark ruling in July that provided criminal immunity for former presidents. Ta.
“Just as immunity coverage for former officers is critical to ensuring that current and future officers are not hampered in their dedicated service, so too is the need to litigate their defense,” Clement wrote in the petition. The Commonwealth Forum's commitments are also important.”
The Fulton County Prosecutor's Office argued that the lower court reached the correct conclusion and urged the judge to dismiss Meadows' appeal.
“The following opinion applies long-established principles of legal interpretation in reaching its decision, and there is no need or urgency for reconsideration,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing. There is.
The 11th Circuit's ruling comes after four other defendants in the case — Trump Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark, who signed documents purporting to be Georgia's electors despite Biden's victory. It doomed a similar effort by three pro-Trump figures to move charges to federal court.
Their efforts are moving forward on a slower schedule, and the option of going to the Supreme Court remains open.
Mr. Meadows is also increasingly pursuing a lawsuit in Arizona over the 2020 federal election, which has so far been unsuccessful.
