Attorneys for President-elect Donald Trump filed a motion on Monday to dismiss the Manhattan business records case, potentially marking the final stages of the unprecedented prosecution of a former president.
Trump’s attorneys, Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, contend in the 72-page dismissal motion that the “Presidential immunity doctrine, the Presidential Transition Act, and the Supremacy Clause” require the case’s dismissal and the verdict to be vacated “immediately.”
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In their filing, Blanche and Bove note the positions Special Counsel Jack Smith took last week in the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) two federal cases against Trump.
Smith notably filed a motion to dismiss the election interference case and took similar action to end the documents case because the Constitution does not allow the prosecution of a president. These moves signal Smith’s surrender.
Arguing that presidential immunity requires dismissal, Blanche and Bove pointed to Smith’s reasoning in his motion to dismiss the election interference case:
Late last month, SCO [the special counsel’s office] confirmed DOJ’s view that the “Constitution’s prohibition on federal indictment and prosecution of a sitting President” is “categorical,” and that Smith’s politically- motivated prosecutions of President Trump had to be dismissed “before [President Trump] is inaugurated.” Ex. 61 at 1. Consistent with Trump, SCO acknowledged that “the President must not be unduly encumbered in fulfilling his weighty responsibilities . . . .” Id. at 2-3.
Steven Cheung, the incoming White House communications director, said in a statement that Blanche and Bove filed a “powerhouse motion” to bring an end to the case.
“President Trump and his legal team have filed a powerhouse motion to dismiss once and for all the unconstitutional and politically motivated Manhattan DA Hoax,” Cheung said, adding:
This lawless case should have never been brought, and the Constitution demands that it be immediately dismissed, as President Trump must be allowed to continue the Presidential Transition process, and execute the vital duties of the presidency, unobstructed by the remains of this, or any other, Witch Hunt.
Cheung emphasized that all eyes are now on Justice Juan Merchan.
“Today’s motion provides every possible chance for Judge Merchan do the right thing and end what remains of this charade immediately, rightfully allowing our country to unite behind President Trump for the betterment of all Americans,” he said.
When Merchan granted Blanche and Bove’s request to file a motion to dismiss on November 22, he gave them a December 2 deadline to file and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office a December 9 deadline to respond.
Bragg’s office, which is seeking to freeze the case for four years until Trump leaves office, needs to respond by the end of the day on Monday.
The case is People v. Trump, No. 71543/23, in the Supreme Court of New York County.
