Special counsel Jack Smith is reportedly in discussions with the Justice Department to end both federal criminal cases against President-elect Donald Trump.
Smith, who has led two cases against Trump since he was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November 2022, is said to be planning to halt the 2020 election subversion case and the classified documents case against Trump in light of Trump’s decisive presidential victory.
A spokesperson for the special counsel’s office declined to comment to the Washington Examiner but highlighted the DOJ’s long-standing policy that states, “The indictment or criminal prosecution of a sitting President would unconstitutionally undermine the capacity of the executive branch to perform its constitutionally assigned functions,” according to a memorandum from October 2000.
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A source connected to Trump’s legal team told the Washington Examiner they had not received direct contact confirming Smith’s reported intentions to wind down the federal cases but emphasized that it is “constitutionally impossible to prosecute a sitting president of the United States of America.”
“Given the very serious constitutional and legal issues with prosecuting even a president-elect of the United States of America, I would be shocked if Jack Smith’s operation is not swiftly wound up by the Biden Department of Justice,” the source added.
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Trump was largely expected to order his DOJ to dismiss the cases once he assumed office on Jan. 20, but a source told Fox News the decision could come from Smith well before the president-elect takes his oath of office.
Separately, New York Attorney General Letitia James expressed said her office “did not expect” Vice President Kamala Harris to lose the presidential election.
“We did not expect this result, but we are prepared to respond to this result,” James said during a press conference. “And my office has been preparing for several months because we’ve been here before. We faced this challenge before, and we use the rule of law to fight back, and we are prepared to fight back once again.”
James and her office have been in a legal battle over a $454 million civil fraud judgment against President-elect Donald Trump. James concluded that her office and the state of New York would continue to oppose “injustice” and are prepared for any attempts at “revenge or retribution” by the president-elect. Trump has suggested several times on the 2024 campaign trail he would pursue retribution against the opponents in his legal battles, though he has also stated that this mindset “has to stop.”
Asher Notheis contributed to this report.
