Former President Donald Trump filed an appeal notice on Thursday in the election subversion case against him in Washington, D.C., setting up possible delays while the appellate court hears his arguments.
Trump’s notice indicated he would appeal U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan’s recent decision to deny Trump’s request to dismiss the case on presidential immunity grounds and on the grounds that he was already acquitted of his alleged crimes through his second impeachment trial.
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Trump’s lawyers also called on Chutkan to pause all court proceedings while his appeal is pending. A temporary stay on Chutkan’s specific dismissal denial will likely occur during the appeals process, but Trump is pushing to pause the entire case.
His lawyers argued that such a pause is “mandatory,” and they asked Chutkan to grant Trump’s request within seven days.
“The filing of President Trump’s notice of appeal has deprived this Court of jurisdiction over this case in its entirety pending resolution of the appeal,” they wrote. “Therefore, a stay of all further proceedings is mandatory and automatic.”
Trump’s defense team noted that special counsel Jack Smith, the lead prosecutor in the case, told them he opposes Trump’s request to stay all court proceedings.
The lawyers also warned that if Chutkan does not grant the stay, Trump would ask the appellate court to step in and grant it instead.
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It is unclear how Chutkan and the appellate court will respond and whether this will affect the timeline of the trial, which is scheduled to begin in March.
Smith brought four felony charges against Trump in August alleging he conspired to defraud the United States and obstruct the certification of the 2020 election. Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
