Trump DC trial set for March 2024, in thick of GOP presidential fight
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[August 29, 2023]
By Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Donald Trump will stand trial in March 2024 for
trying to overturn his 2020 presidential election defeat, one day before
Republican voters in more than a dozen U.S. states will decide whether
to give him a chance to recapture the White House.
U.S. Judge Tanya Chutkan on Monday set a trial date of March 4 for the
federal case in Washington, one of four criminal prosecutions the former
president faces.
That is one day before "Super Tuesday," a potentially decisive date in
the Republican presidential nominating contest, when states from Maine
to California will hold their nominating contests. Opinion polls show
Trump leading his rivals by a wide margin.
Chutkan's decision means that Trump will likely have to stand trial in
at least three separate criminal cases while he is campaigning for the
party's nomination to take on Democratic President Joe Biden in the
November 2024 election. A trial date in a fourth criminal case has not
yet been set.
He is also a defendant in three civil trials scheduled to take place
over the coming six months.
Trump's lawyers had pressed for an April 2026 trial date, but Chutkan
said they did not need that long to prepare.
“Mr. Trump will have to make the trial date work, regardless of his
schedule," Chutkan said.
Trump said he would appeal, but legal experts say scheduling decisions
cannot be appealed until a verdict has been reached. Trump's lawyer John
Lauro said he would abide by Chutkan's schedule.
Trump is due to stand trial in New York on March 25 on state charges of
concealing a hush money payment to a porn star. Chutkan said she would
consult with the judge in that case to work out any potential scheduling
conflicts.
A third trial is scheduled for May 20, 2024 on federal charges in
Florida, alleging that Trump illegally retained classified records after
leaving the White House and tried to obstruct justice.
A trial date for the fourth criminal case in Georgia has not yet been
set. Fulton County prosecutor Fani Willis has requested a start of March
4, but Chutkan's decision means that timeline will likely shift.
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Republican presidential candidate and
former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he campaigns at the
Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, U.S. August 12, 2023.
REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo
Trump did not attend Monday's hearing. He has previously lashed out
at Chutkan, saying, without evidence, that she is biased against
him. Chutkan has warned that Trump should stop posting inflammatory
statements online about witnesses or others involved in the case.
Trump has portrayed all four criminal prosecutions as politically
motivated attempts to stop him from returning to power.
He has pleaded not guilty in three of those cases, and is due in
Georgia on Sept. 6 to enter a plea in that case, according to a
court filing on Monday. That case also stemming from his efforts to
overturn his 2020 defeat.
One of his 18 co-defendants in Georgia, his former White House chief
of staff Mark Meadows, is pressing to move his trial to federal
court, where he might face a more sympathetic jury.
In Washington, Trump's attorneys said they need time to sort through
the government's evidence, which totals about 12.8 million pages.
“This man’s liberty and life is at stake and he deserves an adequate
representation,” Lauro said.
Prosecutors say much of the evidence consists of public materials,
such as Trump's statements and congressional records. They said on
Monday that they have handed most of it over.
Chutkan said Trump's legal team should have already gotten a good
start. "Mr. Trump’s counsel has known this was coming for some
time,” she said.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; writing by Andy Sullivan; Editing by
Scott Malone and Alistair Bell)
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