Former President Donald Trump has filed a court document stating that he will plead not guilty to charges related to his actions after the 2020 election. The charges were brought by special counsel Jack Smith in a revised indictment. Trump, who was the Republican presidential candidate for the November 5 election, has also waived his right to appear in a federal court in Washington.
In the court filing, Trump authorized his attorneys to enter a plea of not guilty on his behalf to each count of the superseding indictment. Prosecutors and Trump’s lawyers are scheduled to appear in court on Thursday to determine next steps following the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling.
In August, Smith’s office revised the indictment after the Supreme Court ruled that presidents should have immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts. This ruling sent the case back to a lower court and forced Smith to rework the charges. The new indictment removes specific claims made against Trump but retains similar criminal charges including conspiracy, obstruction of an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.
The indictment alleges that Trump committed these alleged election-related crimes as a private citizen rather than as president. This suggests that Smith believes the Supreme Court’s immunity decision does not pose a major obstacle in convicting him.
Trump responded to this new indictment on Truth Social last month, calling it “ridiculous” and demanding its immediate dismissal. He claimed that these charges were an attempt to interfere with future elections.
Prior to this revised indictment, Trump had pleaded not guilty last year when previous charges were brought against him by Smith’s office. He appeared in court at that time but no photography or video footage was allowed inside.
Apart from this federal election case, Smith has also brought charges against Trump in Florida relating to classified documents and obstruction of justice. However, those charges were dismissed by a federal judge who deemed Smith unlawfully appointed by the U.S attorney general.
Trump is also facing similar election-related charges in Fulton County, Georgia which have been put on hold while he appeals a judge’s ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ involvement due allegations of misconduct involving her former special prosecutor whom she had been romantically involved with previously.
In September, Trump is set for sentencing after being found guilty of falsifying business records connected with payments made during the 2016 election campaign.