Jan 08, 2024 - 12:29
By nbcnews.com

What to know as appeals court hears Trump’s immunity claim in election interference case

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s latest legal battle will take place in a Washington courtroom on Tuesday as the former president attempts to quash his prosecution over efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election that culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will hear oral arguments on Trump’s claim that he has absolute immunity from prosecution because of his status as president at the time.

Trump himself plans to be in attendance at the federal courthouse just a few blocks from the Capitol complex.

Here’s what to know ahead of the arguments:

Trump’s criminal charges

In August, a federal grand jury in Washington indicted Trump on four charges: conspiracy to defraud the U.S.; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction; and conspiracy against the right to vote and to have one’s vote counted. Trump pleaded not guilty.

Washington-based U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is presiding over the case, wants the trial to go ahead in March, which would allow it to be concluded well before the election, but Trump’s appeal threatens that timeline unless courts act quickly.

What has happened so far?

On Dec. 1, Chutkan denied Trump’s motion to dismiss his indictment on presidential immunity and constitutional grounds.

The case is on hold while Trump appeals the decision.

Special counsel Jack Smith last month asked the Supreme Court to immediately step in before the appeals court could consider the issue, but the justices turned down that request, meaning the appeals court oral argument could go ahead as planned.