Donald Trump has asked a Georgia appeals court to throw out a criminal case accusing him of election interference on the grounds that he will have presidential immunity when he takes office again in January.
The 78-year-old president-elect and 14 others were hit with racketeering charges in 2023 by scandal-scarred Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election result in the Peach State. Trump has denied the allegations.
In a filing Wednesday to the Georgia Court of Appeals, Trump’s lawyers said the case should be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction on the grounds the sitting president can’t face prosecution.
“A sitting president is completely immune from indictment or any criminal process, state or federal,” Trump lawyer Steve Sadow wrote in the court papers.
The defense lawyer said in a statement that Trump is asking “the Georgia Court of Appeals confirm its lack of jurisdiction to continue hearing his appeal now that he is president-elect and will soon become the 47th President of the United States.”
They are also asking the court to order the lower trial court to toss the case immediately.
“The filing states that any ongoing criminal proceeding against a sitting president must be dismissed under the U.S. Constitution.”
Two federal criminal cases have been dropped against the incoming 47th President on similar grounds and Trump’s sentencing in a New York state hush money case was postponed as well since his re-election last month.
Willis’ case against Trump was derailed earlier this year when it was revealed that she had an affair with Nathan Wade, the man she appointed to lead the Trump probe.
Wade was forced to resign and the case has been on hold while Trump and others have been in the process of appealing to boot Willis off the case.
The Court of Appeals last month abruptly canceled oral arguments on the issue of whether Willis should be kicked off of the case for alleged misconduct tied to the tryst.
Two federal criminal cases have been dropped against the incoming 47th President on similar grounds and Trump’s sentencing in a New York state hush money case has been indefinitely postponed as well since his re-election last month.
The DA’s office didn’t immediately return a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.