The U.S. Supreme Court has released its decision regarding presidential immunity in the case involving President Trump's actions on January 6, 2021.
While the court did issue some major rulings about immunity, the justices chose not to rule directly in Trump's specific case, kicking it back down to the lower courts. That move will delay special counsel Jack Smith's criminal case against Trump, likely pushing it until after the November election.
In its Trump v. United States ruling, the high court said the lower courts simply hadn't finished the job yet.
Chief Justice John Roberts explained, "The lower courts rendered their decisions on a highly expedited basis" and "did not analyze the conduct alleged in the indictment to decide which of it should be categorized as official and which unofficial," according to SCOTUSblog.
Historic Ruling on Presidential Immunity
The Supreme Court did make several statements about immunity that those lower courts will need to apply to Trump’s case.
In a historic ruling, the justices declared that former presidents have absolute immunity from prosecution for their official acts based on core constitutional powers. But they also declared, "There is no immunity for unofficial acts."
Trump has claimed that he acted in his official duties as president when he challenged the certification of the 2020 election on January 6 and should be immune from prosecution.
It's not entirely clear how the ruling will affect the Jack Smith case, but the decision has been widely labeled as a victory for Trump in the broader sense.
MORE: What Will Supreme Court's Presidential Immunity Decision Mean for Trump Case?
"It's a very big win for former President Trump. Recognizing for the first time this sort of immunity of ex-presidents from criminal prosecution," said Prof. Kate Shaw of the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.
WATCH LIVE CBN News ANALYSIS: Supreme Court Rules on Presidential Immunity
Before the ruling, Bradley Jacob, Associate Dean at Regent University Law School, predicted Donald Trump's criminal trials likely will not be dismissed.
"Maybe a few of the allegations, a few of the indictments will be thrown out. But by and large, I think you're going to see continued movement towards the trials of President Trump, but probably not fast enough to reach any conclusions before the election," Jacob said.
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