Special counsel moves to dismiss election interference case against President-elect Donald Trump

FILE – Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to the media about an indictment of former President Donald Trump, Aug. 1, 2023, at an office of the Department of Justice in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Special counsel Jack Smith has asked a federal judge to dismiss the case accusing President-elect Donald Trump of plotting to overturn the 2020 election.

Today’s court filing cites longstanding Justice Department policy shielding presidents from prosecution while in office.

The move announced in court papers marks the end of the Justice Department’s landmark effort to hold Trump accountable for what prosecutors called a criminal conspiracy to cling to power in the run-up to his supporters’ attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Prosecutors said the Justice Department’s position “is that the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated.”

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