The U.S. Supreme Court rejected on Friday a petition by special counsel Jack Smith for an immediate review of a defense in one of two cases he is prosecuting against former President Donald Trump.
“Petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment denied,” the unsigned order reads.
A 1982 Supreme Court opinion had established absolute immunity for presidents from civil suits, but as both parties have argued, the bounds of immunity from criminal prosecution have not been defined.
If the Supreme Court had agreed to review the presidential immunity defense, it would have established the outcome of President Trump’s motion to dismiss this case based on presidential immunity in the appeals court.
It’s also a defense he has raised in several other cases, including civil cases, albeit unsuccessfully.
Both parties argued the case is of historical significance, citing it as evidence to either expedite or slow down the proceedings. In court briefings, the parties argued over the framing of President Trump’s presidential immunity defense.