Trump election lawsuit overview:
- Who: Former President Trump pled not guilty to charges of conspiracy and obstruction over his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
- Why: He was recently indicted by a Washington, D.C., grand jury after an investigation that spanned more than a year.
- Where: The Trump lawsuit was filed in D.C. federal court.
On Aug. 3, former President Donald Trump pled not guilty to charges of conspiracy and obstruction related to his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
He entered his plea at his initial appearance in a Washington, D.C., federal court a block from the U.S. Capitol, which his supporters stormed Jan. 6, 2021, in an effort to keep him in power.
Trump is charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, one count of conspiracy against the right to vote and one count of obstructing the certification of Electoral College votes by Congress on Jan. 6, 2021.
He was indicted by a D.C. grand jury on Aug. 1 following a yearlong investigation.
Special Counsel promises to seek โspeedy trialโ for Trump lawsuit
Jack Smith, special counsel for the U.S. Department of Justice, was reportedly present in the courtroom. Smith, 54, was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate allegations against Trump over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his alleged mishandling of classified documents discovered at Trumpโs Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
The indictment alleges Trump, along with six unnamed co-conspirators, attempted to obstruct and subvert the certification of the 2020 presidential election by pressing election officials and lawmakers to alter vote counts and submit fraudulent slates of electors to Congress.
โMy office will seek a speedy trial so that our evidence can be tested in court and judged by a jury of citizens,โ Smith said. โIn the meantime, I must emphasize that the indictment is only an allegation and that the defendant must be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.โ
At the hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya set the next court date for Aug. 28 before U.S. District Judge Tanya Chuktan. The government has seven days to inform the court about its preferred trial schedule and how long prosecutors expect the trial to last.ย
Trump will then have seven days after the government files the brief with the proposed timeline to submit his own proposed timeline.
In 2019, Trump urged a Florida judge to deny certification to a class of women who claim he paid them less than men during his 2016 presidential campaign.
What do you think about the Trump lawsuit allegations? Tell us about it in the comments.
The federal government is represented by Thomas Windom, J.P. Cooney and Molly Gulland Gaston of the U.S. Attorneyโs Office for the District of Columbia.
The Trump election lawsuit is U.S. v. Trump, et al., Case No. 1:23-cv-00257, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Donโt Miss Out!
Check out our list of Class Action Lawsuits and Class Action Settlements you may qualify to join!
Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:
