U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan declined on Thursday to hold special counsel Jack Smith in contempt of court on Thursday, though she affirmed that he and former President Donald Trump “shall not” file motions to her while the 2020 election subversion case is on hold.
Chutkan had temporarily halted proceedings in the case while Trump appeals his bid to dismiss the case on presidential immunity grounds, a question that is currently being considered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Nevertheless, Smith continued to file documents on the suspended deadlines, prompting Trump to ask Chutkan to hold Smith in contempt for violating the order.
Chutkan clarified that Trump’s counsel did not need to respond to the government’s filings at this time but made clear that her order now intends to bar parties from making additional filings while a three-judge panel weighs Trump’s immunity claims.
Additionally, the judge made clear that her clarification “does not reflect a determination that the Government has violated any of its clear and unambiguous terms or acted in bad faith.”
Trump’s lawyers previously said Chutkan should sanction Smith and two of his prosecutors with civil contempt and force them to withdraw any material they have submitted for the case since Chutkan issued the stay on it last month.
The judge, appointed by then-President Barack Obama, responded by saying that her order did not explicitly bar the special counsel’s office from voluntarily continuing to file.
“Because the Stay Order appears to have been interpreted differently by the parties, the court will clarify: If Defendant wishes to raise objections to the Government’s productions, he may do so without any risk of forfeiture if and when the mandate is returned and the court sets a new schedule,” Chutkan wrote.
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Chutkan’s order on Thursday also hinted at assumptions made by several legal experts that the scheduled March 4 trial date will be pushed back by weeks, and possibly months, due to Trump’s presidential immunity appeal.
“Contrary to Defendant’s assertion, the court has not and will not set deadlines in this case based on the assumption that he has undertaken preparations when not required to do so,” she wrote. Trump’s bid to dismiss the case remains pending before the appeals court and could likely be headed to the Supreme Court, meaning that the case will not be back in Chutkan’s hands until the appeals process runs its course.