Court pauses appeal of Trump's classified documents case

Source: ABC News

November 16, 2024, 4:13 PM


A federal appeals court has granted Special Counsel Jack Smith's request to pause his appeal of President-elect Donald Trump's classified documents case until Dec. 2.

Smith asked for a delay earlier this week to assess the "unprecedented circumstance" of Trump's election and impending presidential inauguration.

The move is part of Smith's winding down of his two cases against Trump -- the classified documents case and the federal election interference case -- due to longstanding Department of Justice policy that prohibits a sitting president from facing criminal prosecution while in office.

"As a result of the election held on November 5, 2024, one of the defendants in this case, Donald J. Trump, is expected to be certified as President-elect on January 6, 2025, and inaugurated on January 20, 2025," the filing said. Smith asked to hold the appeal in abeyance and push the next filing deadline until Dec. 2 "to afford the Government time to assess this unprecedented circumstance and determine the appropriate course going forward consistent with Department of Justice policy."

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/court-pauses-appeal-trumps-classified-documents-case/story?id=115935246