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As the left's once-powerful legal campaign against Donald Trump continues to crumble, New York state judge Juan Marchan weighed in Tuesday on whether the president-elect's conviction in Manhattan should be thrown out based on the Supreme Court's recent immunity decision. The decision was postponed.
But that's not all.
Marchan has now been told by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg how he thinks prosecutors should handle the case going forward, given Trump's victory in both the Electoral College and the popular vote last week. I'm thinking of asking if there are any. Judges certainly recognize that there are constitutional concerns that support dismissal.
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The law establishes that a sitting president has complete immunity from prosecution, indictment, and prosecution. all criminal proceedings In state and federal litigation. This principle was proclaimed long ago by the United States Supreme Court and has been strictly adhered to by the Department of Justice. The reason is simple. The President has unique responsibilities under the constitutional framework and must be free to carry out his duties without interference.
The same principle of immunity from criminal proceedings necessarily applies to the next president during the important and time-consuming transition period of establishing a new government and preparing for official acts in the national interest before being sworn into office. This is reinforced by presidential transitions. A law that prohibits “chaos in the transfer of administrative power.”
Under the Constitution's Supremacy Clause, states have no legal right to interfere with such federal powers. A local prosecutor does not have the authority to interfere with the functions of the executive branch. That would be a dangerously unacceptable intrusion. Therefore, Mr. Bragg must voluntarily dismiss the case against Mr. Trump. Prosecutors waited years to file charges, only filing charges after Trump announced his candidacy for president.
If Mr. Bragg refuses to surrender, Judge Marchan should, in the interests of justice, dismiss the case. He currently cannot legally impose restrictions on the next president before or at any time after taking office. This makes the sentencing scheduled for November 26 legally questionable, if not inappropriate.
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Some have suggested that either sentencing or punishment could be delayed until President Trump leaves office in 2029. But that would violate state law (CPL 380.30), which requires a “specified date not later than 12 months after the conviction.” ” Either way, the net effect will still be a negative impact on the president during his time in office. The Constitution does not condone such violations.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. and his defense team hold a press conference following the Trump verdict on May 30, 2024 in New York, New York. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The motion, which is pending before Judge Machan, is based on the Supreme Court's July 1 ruling that former presidents enjoy substantial immunity from prosecution for their actions while in office. At trial, Bragg's prosecutors improperly presented the very evidence and testimony that was protected. Machan allowed it. This compromises the judgment of the case and is a reversible error. Mr Machan should never have allowed it to happen, knowing full well that the High Court was considering the issue.
This was one of the many mistakes in the wrongful prosecution.
The cases against Mr. Trump have always been complex and legally unsound. The main reason is that it's not a crime to hide a perfectly legal non-disclosure agreement. But that legal consideration didn't stop Mr. Bragg from reinstating the lapsed business record misdemeanor and turning it into a phantom election felony. Without authority as a district attorney, he pursued federal violations that federal prosecutors had declined to prosecute.
Democrats hoped that their legal efforts would smear Trump as a criminal and thereby end his candidacy. Instead, the opposite happened. The Republican candidate deftly turned the tables by making the issue relevant to voters who had come to see him as a victim rather than a villain. He made his case in the court of public opinion, and the majority of Americans ruled.
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Ultimately, the Trump trial further solidified public disgust with Democratic prosecutors weaponizing the law for political gain.
Trump never had a chance to get a fair trial in New York. The amendment came in a venue where 90 percent of Americans voted against Biden in the 2020 election. The presiding judge will be a judge handpicked by the prosecutor's office, who has contributed to an organization to stop Trump while also donating to President Biden.
Given the outcome of the presidential election, both prosecutors and judges now have a unique opportunity to conclude this case before it endures the embarrassment of being overturned by a higher court.
Marchan's adult daughter helped raise millions of dollars for the Democratic Party and likely had a financial interest in the outcome of her father's case. All of this created at least the appearance of a disqualifying conflict of interest, which the judge ignored.
It was therefore not surprising that the evidentiary rulings from Mr. Marchand's court were consistently one-sided. Damaging evidence with little or no probative value was somehow deemed admissible against Trump.
Throughout the trial, key witnesses told the defense that there were no federal election violations because Marchan ignored his duty to protect the rights of defendants and paid “hush money” to Stormy Daniels, which was not allowed by law. refused to testify. Campaign Donations.
Marchan routinely made countless reversible errors that shredded defendants' due process rights. These decisions were driven by an anti-Trump bias that the justices appear to wear proudly.
As if that wasn't all bad enough, Marchan then goes on to break the hallowed power of unanimity in verdicts by instructing jurors that they don't have to agree unanimously on a single illegal act. Eliminated the principle. They were free to oppose Trump while convicting him.
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We still don't know (and Trump doesn't know) what election crimes were allegedly committed and how the jury voted on each crime. There is a possibility that the case could be divided into the three options presented by the prosecution. If so, how that results in a “guilty” verdict remains a mystery.
The judge's instructions were flawed and wrong. He effectively tore apart fundamental rights built into the principles of the Constitution. The Supreme Court has previously ruled that unanimity extends to all material issues, including all necessary elements of a primary crime, and in this case, the establishment of a secondary crime.
Mr. Bragg and Mr. Marchan must know that Mr. Trump's jury verdict will never withstand judicial scrutiny in an appellate court. This case was riddled with mistakes from start to finish, and in the end it was almost certain that the case would be reversed.
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Given the outcome of the presidential election, both prosecutors and judges now have a unique opportunity to conclude this case before it endures the embarrassment of being overturned by a higher court. Their vindictive legal strategy failed at the voting booth.
Dismissing the lawsuit gives them a way out. They should take the exit.
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