Prosecutor drops federal cases against Trump

What happened

Special Counsel Jack Smith Monday officially requested that a federal judge dismiss his office's longstanding indictment against Donald Trump for allegedly working to subvert the 2020 presidential election.

Who said what

Smith's request is a "final acknowledgment" of his office's prosecutorial dead end and shows he's "bowing to the reality" of a Department of Justice policy against prosecuting sitting presidents, said The New York Times. In his letter to presiding judge Tanya Chutkan, Smith stressed that his request was "not based on the merits or strength of the case against the defendant," but was the result of a DOJ interpretation of the Constitution that the case be "dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated."

Smith's election subversion case, and his separate indictment against Trump for improper classified documents handling, had been on hold while the courts "awaited word from Smith about how he wanted to proceed in the cases due to Trump's election," said MSNBC. Incoming White House Communications Director Steven Cheung told Fox News that the request for dismissal of both cases was a "major victory for the rule of law."

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What next?

Trump is "still working to stave off prosecution in Georgia" for his alleged election subversion actions there, said CNN. Crucially, Smith's filing yesterday "held out the possibility that the charges could be refiled" against Trump following his term in office.