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Donald Trump would have been convicted of trying to subvert the 2020 presidential election had it not been for his victory in last year's election, according to the special counsel leading federal charges against the president-elect.
Jack Smith, a federal prosecutor, was appointed by US Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022 as a special counsel to oversee the cases against Trump. He has received two impeachments against the former president, one of which accuses Trump of meddling in the results of the 2020 election.
But Smith eventually backed away from overturning both programs after Trump won the 2024 election based on a longstanding Justice Department policy that bars the prosecution of sitting presidents.
This opinion is “prejudicial and does not alter the seriousness of the alleged crime, the strength of the State's evidence, or the merits of the prosecution, which the Office stands fully behind”, Smith said in a statement released early Tuesday.
“Yes, but with the election of Mr. Trump and the imminent return to the Presidency, the Office (of the special counsel) has evaluated whether the admissible evidence is sufficient to secure and maintain a conviction,” Smith added.
A spokesman for Trump, who denies wrongdoing, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This is a growing story