Can Trump really pardon himself? The impact on his convictions and criminal cases

INEWS

Donald Trump’s election victory will essentially end the criminal cases brought against him, for at least the four years he is in the White House for a second term.

Trump, the first convicted criminal to become president-elect, has been facing four simultaneous prosecutions.

The allegations range from his attempt to cover up a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 campaign to his attempts to overturn his 2020 election defeat.

He is due to be sentenced in New York this month in the hush money case, after he was convicted in May on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.

Following the election result, he is likely to avoid prison under a longstanding federal prohibition against prosecuting a sitting president.

And while Trump could, as President, pardon himself for any federal convictions, he can’t pardon state offences such as the hush money case.

Trump ‘to fire special counsel Jack Smith’

Special counsel Jack Smith is reportedly weighing up how to wind down two federal cases against Trump before the president-elect takes office.

Smith charged Trump last year with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and illegally hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

The president-elect has pleaded not guilty to all charges and claims the prosecutions are politically motivated.

Trump’s election victory means that the Justice Department believes he can no longer face prosecution in accordance with department legal opinions meant to shield presidents from criminal charges while in office

Trump has said he would fire Smith “within two seconds” of being sworn in.

Once back in the White House, Trump would have the authority to fire Smith and shut down the federal cases against him.

Hush money sentencing

Trump’s lawyers are expected to ask for a delay in his sentencing over hush money payments to the porn star Stormy Daniels, which is scheduled for 26 November.

He was convicted in May on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records and could be sentenced to probation, conditional release, or prison.

Sentencing a president-elect ahead of Inauguration Day would be unprecedented in US history. As a senior citizen with no previous convictions, his lawyers are likely to argue that he should not be jailed.

A delay in his sentencing is in part due to a July US Supreme Court ruling that presidents have broad immunity from prosecution over their official acts.

Trump argues the case should be dismissed based on the ruling, which prosecutors dispute, and has vowed to appeal his conviction once he is sentenced.

Federal prosecutions

Trump faces four charges in federal court in Washington accusing him of spreading false claims of election fraud to try to block the collection and certification of votes following the 2020 election, which Trump lost to Joe Biden.