Former President Trump misrepresented in a social media post what the Supreme Court’s ruling on on presidential immunity means for his criminal and civil cases, reports the Associated Press. “TOTAL EXONERATION!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. “It is clear that the Supreme Court’s Brilliantly Written and Historic Decision ENDS all of Crooked Joe Biden’s Witch Hunts against me, including the WHITE HOUSE AND DOJ INSPIRED CIVIL HOAXES in New York.” None of Trump’s cases has been dismissed as a result of the ruling, nor have verdicts against him been overturned. The ruling does amount to a victory for the Republican presidential candidate, whose legal strategy has focused on delaying court proceedings until after the election.
It is correct that a delay of his Washington, D.C., trial on charges of election interference has been indefinitely extended. Law Prof. Barbara McQuade of the University of Michigan, a former U.S. Attorney, said Trump’s claim is “inaccurate for a number of reasons.” She said, "The court found immunity from prosecution, not exoneration.. The court did not say that Trump’s conduct did not amount to criminal behavior. Just that prosecutors are not allowed to prosecute him for it because of the special role of a president and the need to permit him to make ‘bold’ and ‘fearless’ decisions without concern for criminal consequences.” She said Trump’s case over classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago estate won’t be affected, as it arose from conduct after he left the White House. She added that any impact on his New York hush money trial “seems unlikely” since the crimes were committed in a personal capacity. Because the ruling is focused on immunity for criminal conduct, McQuade said, it will not protect him from civil liability in his cases regarding defamatory statements about advice columnist E. Jean Carroll or fraudulent business practices at the Trump Organization.
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