The office of special counsel Jack Smith has asked the judge for extra time as he weighs moving forward in former President Donald Trump's 2020 election interference case. The move would push any proceedings at least into September, just two months shy of the 2024 election.
A June Supreme Court decision granted Trump sweeping immunity for official acts as president and bumped the case back to a lower court. Last week, District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan set an August 16 hearing date for both sides to go over the schedule moving forward.
Smith's request suggests prosecutors are still working out a strategy.
In the filing, Smith's team wrote, "Although those consultations are well underway, the Government has not finalized its position on the most appropriate schedule for the parties to brief issues related to the decision."
It added, "The Government therefore respectfully requests additional time to provide the Court with an informed proposal regarding the schedule for pretrial proceedings moving forward."
It continues, "The Government continues to assess the new precedent set forth last month in the Supreme Court's decision in Trump v. United States," adding, "although those consultations are well underway, the Government has not finalized its position on the most appropriate schedule for the parties to brief issues related to the decision."
The high court ruled in June that a former president has substantial immunity from prosecution for official acts committed while in office, but not for unofficial acts.
Smith's filing noted that Trump's defense team has not objected to the request for more time.
Kate McManus ✉
Kate McManus is a New Jersey-based Newsmax writer who's spent more than two decades as a journalist.
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