In a major legal development, Special Counsel Jack Smith has filed a motion to dismiss the federal charges against President-elect Donald Trump related to the January 6 Capitol riot. Smith’s team also requested to drop its appeal of a Florida judge’s dismissal of Trump’s classified documents case, citing Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election and the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) long-standing position that a sitting president cannot be federally indicted.
Smith’s motion, unopposed by Trump’s legal team, states, “The Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated,” emphasizing that the decision is not based on the merits of the case but constitutional precedent.
Trump had faced four charges in the Jan. 6 case, including conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and conspiracy against rights. These charges stemmed from his alleged efforts to subvert the 2020 election results. The dismissal follows a pause in proceedings ordered by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan after Trump’s November 5 election win.
Steven Cheung, Trump’s communications director, called the DOJ’s decision a “major victory for the rule of law,” adding that it signals the end of what Trump’s team has long described as a politically motivated effort to weaponize the justice system.
Smith’s decision marks the winding down of a series of federal investigations into Trump. These included a classified documents case dismissed in July and the high-profile Jan. 6 indictment filed in August 2023. Legal experts had viewed the classified documents case as one of the strongest against Trump, but recent developments have cleared significant legal hurdles for the President-elect.
Trump still faces two state-level cases: the Manhattan hush-money case, which is currently on hold following his election victory, and the Georgia election-tampering case, which remains mired in legal challenges. At their peak, the charges against Trump totaled 91, but he has pleaded not guilty to all and consistently labeled the investigations a “witch hunt.”
As Trump prepares to return to the White House on January 20, 2025, he has hinted at using his presidential pardon power to reconsider the convictions of January 6 rioters. This decision marks a turning point in Trump’s legal battles as he prepares to assume the presidency once again.
