Saudi FM calls Indian, Pakistani counterparts to discuss developments    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Arabia cracks down on fraudulent Hajj campaigns, urges pilgrims to use official channels    Nammos Amala Resort to open soon with Saudi-Greek designs    Saudi Arabia completes 674 Vision 2030 initiatives, achieves 93% of KPIs as ninth-year milestone marked    Literature Commission inaugurates Saudi Pavilion at Muscat Book Fair    Saudi Minister of Culture holds talks with his Costa Rican counterpart in Jeddah    Alkhorayef praises advancements in Al-Kharj food industries sector    MHRSD: 80% of recruitment offices are non-compliant with regulations    At least 50 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes across Gaza    Teenage girl killed in French school stabbing attack    Trump claims meeting with China after Beijing denies any trade negotiations    GACA chief chairs 16th meeting of the Steering Committee on aviation's strategy    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Jennifer Lopez dazzles in Jeddah with a Formula 1 performance    Saudi Arabia open to expanded 64-team World Cup in 2034, says sports minister    Average life expectancy in Saudi Arabia rises to78.8 years    Film Commission launches 'Cinema' initiative to enhance content    Famed Philippine film star Nora Aunor dies at 71    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Trump wants Georgia election subversion case dismissed, arguing he has presidential immunity
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 08 - 01 - 2024

Former US President Donald Trump is seeking to have the sweeping criminal conspiracy case against him in Georgia thrown out by arguing he is protected from prosecution under presidential immunity.
Trump's immunity claims in the Georgia case, filed on Monday as part of a motion to dismiss state-level criminal charges against the former president, are similar to those argued by his defense team in the federal election subversion case.
"The indictment in this case charges President Trump for acts that lie at the heart of his official responsibilities as president. The indictment is barred by presidential immunity and should be dismissed with prejudice," the motion filed by Trump's lawyer in the Georgia case reads.
Monday's filing in the Georgia case reiterates what the former president's lawyers have repeatedly asserted — that Trump was working in his official capacity as president when he allegedly undermined the 2020 election results and therefore has immunity.
Trump's attorney argues that the specific acts in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' indictment "lie squarely within the 'outer perimeter' of the president's official duties."
This includes Trump's public statements about the administration of the 2020 election, communicating with the Justice Department about investigations related to the election and "urging the vice president and members of Congress to exercise their official responsibilities consistent with the President's view of the public good."
"Organizing slates of electors in furtherance of that effort to have Congress exercise its responsibilities falls within the president's official duties as well," Trump's lawyer argues.
As such, Trump's indictment in both the Georgia and federal case are unconstitutional because presidents cannot be criminally prosecuted for "official acts" unless they are impeached and convicted by the US Senate.
Steve Sadow, lead counsel for Trump in the Fulton County case, also noted in a statement they previously sought to dismiss the case on First Amendment grounds, which the courts haven't yet decided.
On Tuesday, the DC US Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments by attorneys for Trump and special counsel Jack Smith over the same two claims of immunity, a hearing Trump himself is set to attend.
Monday is the deadline for pre-trial motions to be filed in the sprawling Georgia racketeering case against Trump and the remaining co-defendants accused of helping the former president try to overturn the 2020's election results in the state.
Fulton County prosecutors said they want the trial to begin in early August 2024, which could potentially be directly in the middle of Trump's presidential election campaign if he wins the Republican nomination.
Trump's legal team is invoking the supremacy clause of the US Constitution to try to shield him from criminal prosecution in Georgia.
In court filings, Trump's team argues the state-level justice system can't interfere with federal duties. This argument, if successful, could further expand the protections around the presidency, even more so than what Trump argues related to protections he believes he should have under presidential immunity.
"The Supreme Court has held that states cannot use their criminal law to interfere with actions that are inseparably connected to the functioning of the national government. There can be no doubt that the election of the president of the United States is so connected to the function of the national government," his attorneys wrote.
Trump's legal team also filed a motion to dismiss the charges against him on double jeopardy grounds, saying that the indictment should be dismissed because he was already impeached and tried in the Senate, where he was acquitted for his role in the January 6, 2021, riots.
In addition, Trump's lawyers argue the Georgia case should be dismissed on due process grounds, claiming the former president "lacked fair notice" that his baseless claims about widespread election fraud could be criminalized.
"Our country has a longstanding tradition of forceful political advocacy regarding widespread allegations of fraud and irregularities in a long list of presidential elections throughout our history, therefore, President Trump lacked fair notice that his advocacy in the instance of the 2020 Presidential Election could be criminalized," Trump's lawyers write.
"Due process bars courts from applying a novel construction of a criminal statute to conduct that neither the statute nor any prior judicial decision has fairly disclosed to be within its scope," they add. — CNN


Clic here to read the story from its source.