How Trump’s win will affect his court cases
Former President Donald Trump will retake the White House after defeating Vice President Kamala Harris.
With his win, Trump will be potentially able to unburden himself of the federal court cases that could’ve landed him behind bars. However, state court cases in Georgia and New York could remain on the ballot.
"He's going to order the two federal cases to be dismissed," Alan Morrison, law professor at George Washington University, told FOX Television Stations. "He will probably succeed in having them dismissed."
Where do Trump court cases stand?
Federal election interference case: Still pending
Trump was charged in August 2023 by special counsel Jack Smith with conspiring to overturn the results of his election loss to President Joe Biden in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
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Prosecutors allege Trump and his allies knowingly pushed election fraud lies to pressure state officials to overturn Biden's win, worked to enlist slates of fake electors in battleground states and pressured his vice president, Mike Pence, to disrupt the ceremonial counting of electoral votes.
New evidence unsealed in Trump election case
A judge on Friday unsealed more evidence in the criminal case accusing former President Donald Trump of attempting to overturn the 2020 election. Jenn Mascott, an associate professor of law and Director of the Separation of Powers Institute at Catholic Law joined LiveNOW from FOX's Josh Breslow to talk about what's next.
Prosecutors say Trump and his allies also sought to exploit the pro-Trump mob's attack on the Capitol by trying to convince members of Congress to further delay the certification of Biden’s victory.
Prosecutors detail news evidence against Trump in court papers, accusing the former president of resorting to "crimes to try to stay in office" after he lost the 2020 election. The filing offers the most comprehensive view to date of what prosecutors intend to prove if the case reaches trial.
Trump has said that he would fire Smith if he were elected president "within two seconds" of taking office.
Classified documents
Trump was also charged in June 2023 by Smith with illegally retaining classified documents taken with him from the White House to Mar-a-Lago after he left office in January 2021, and then obstructing government demands to give them back.
RELATED: New brief details allegations against Trump in election interference: ‘Resorted to crimes’
He was hit with additional charges the following month accusing him of conspiring to ask a staffer to delete surveillance video at the property, and with holding onto a document -- described by prosecutors as a Pentagon "plan of attack" -- he’s alleged to have shown to visitors at his golf club in New Jersey.
Federal judge dismisses Trump classified docs case
Trial attorney Jeremy Rosenthal joins LiveNOW from FOX to further explain Former President Donald Trump's classified case being dismissed. The judge sided with defense lawyers who said the special counsel who filed the charges was illegally appointed by the Justice Department.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon threw out the entire case in July, issuing a stunning opinion that said Smith had been unlawfully appointed as special counsel and that his office was improperly funded.
Smith’s team has appealed that ruling to the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, where it is now pending.
Morrison said had the case continued and went to trial, it stood to be the biggest blow to Trump as he would’ve stood a great chance of ending up behind bars.
"The government routinely prosecutes people for much less serious breaches of security than Trump had," he said.
Georgia election interference case
Even as president, Trump has no authority to stop the proceedings in the Georgia election interference case, given that it’s a state case.
Trump and 18 others were charged in August by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis with participating in a scheme to illegally try to overturn his narrow loss to Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
The alleged scheme includes a wide-ranging list of alleged acts, including Trump’s infamous January 2021 phone call to Georgia’s secretary of state, an effort to replace Georgia’s Democratic presidential electors with ones who would vote for Trump, harassment of a Fulton County election worker and the unauthorized copying of data and software from elections equipment.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee has not yet set a trial date for Trump. The case against Trump is currently on hold while the former president pursues a pretrial appeal.
New York civil fraud case
As with the Georgia case, Trump’s role as president would not affect the civil proceedings of the case against him in New York.
He was ordered to pay a $454 million penalty, ruling in a civil fraud lawsuit that he lied about his wealth for years as he built the real estate empire that vaulted him to stardom and the White House.
Supreme Court impact on Trump court cases
This week's Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity threatens to have far reaching impacts, including on a pending federal case about the actions of Former President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021. LiveNOW from Fox's Jeané Franseen speaks with Washington Examiner columnist Quin Hillyer for more on the impact of the decision.
Trump is appealing Judge Arthur Engoron’s Feb. 16 decision. The judge found that Trump, his company and executives including his sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr. schemed to pad his net worth by billions of dollars on financial statements given to banks, insurers and others to make deals and secure loans.
Trump denies wrongdoing. He decried the verdict as "weaponization against a political opponent" and complained he was being penalized for "having built a perfect company, great cash, great buildings, great everything."