Trump seeks disqualification of US judge in federal election case
Send a link to a friend
[September 12, 2023]
By Andrew Goudsward
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Former U.S. President Donald Trump filed a motion
on Monday seeking to disqualify U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan from
presiding over one of the criminal cases charging him with trying to
overturn his 2020 presidential election loss.
Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination,
said last month he planned to seek Chutkan's recusal as well as a change
of venue for the case.
Trump argued in a court filing that Chutkan’s prior statements appearing
to refer to his role in influencing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S.
Capitol by his supporters raise questions about her impartiality in the
case.
The court filing cites a remark Chutkan made at a 2022 sentencing
hearing for a Capitol riot defendant in which she suggested that the
rioter was motivated by "blind loyalty to one person who, by the way,
remains free to this day," after some defendants argued they thought
they were doing what Trump wanted.
Trump’s lawyers argued that the comment indicated the judge’s belief
that Trump “should be prosecuted and imprisoned.”
Trump has been charged by U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith with four
felony counts for allegedly plotting to subvert the results of the 2020
election. That is one of four criminal cases he faces as he runs for the
Republican nomination in 2024. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
"Although Judge Chutkan may genuinely intend to give President Trump a
fair trial — and may believe that she can do so — her public statements
unavoidably taint these proceedings, regardless of outcome," Trump's
lawyers wrote.
[to top of second column]
|
Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald
Trump speaks at a South Dakota Republican party rally in Rapid City,
South Dakota, U.S. September 8, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Trump has frequently criticized Chutkan on his social media site
since she was randomly assigned to preside over the election case in
Washington federal court.
Chutkan set a trial date in the case for March 2024 over the
objections of Trump and his lawyers, who sought to push the
proceeding back to 2026. The judge also previously warned Trump
about attempting to influence potential witnesses in the case.
The Washington indictment does not specifically charge Trump for the
Jan. 6 attack, but alleges that he exploited the riot in an attempt
to delay Congress' certification of his defeat by Democrat Joe
Biden.
Chutkan, who was nominated by former Democratic President Barack
Obama, ruled against Trump in 2021 in a civil case he brought
attempting to shield his White House records from the U.S. House
committee that investigated the Capitol attack.
"Presidents are not kings, and Plaintiff is not president," Chutkan
wrote in that ruling.
Trump also on Monday sought to dismiss seven of the counts he faces
in a separate Georgia case, arguing that he is immune from
prosecution for actions he took in his official capacity as
president.
(Reporting by Andrew Goudsward, additional reporting by Kanishka
Singh and Jack Queen; editing by Rami Ayyub and Scott Malone)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |