Several courts are currently interested in the former US President. It remains to be seen whether this will have an impact on the hotly contested congressional elections.
Secret documents taken away, allegations of fraud, the investigation into the attack on the US Capitol: No ex-American president has ever had such far-reaching legal problems as Donald Trump. A look at the currently ongoing major proceedings relating to the 76-year-old:
dispute over government documents
The search of Trump’s private rooms at his Mar-a-Lago golf club made headlines in August, during which the federal police FBI confiscated documents marked “Secret” and “Top Secret” from his tenure. Before that, the National Archives – which is responsible for storing presidential documents – tried for months to get papers from Trump.
A total of around 13,000 documents with almost 22,000 pages were confiscated, including around 200 documents with a confidential note. By storing the papers at his home, Trump could have made himself guilty. Trump’s lawyers managed to delay the investigation by appointing a special investigator to investigate whether all papers were lawfully confiscated. The US Department of Justice appealed the decision. The investigation is also about the allegation of obstruction of justice.
Defamation lawsuit following rape allegations in New York
In the summer of 2019, author E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her in a New York department store in the 1990s. When Trump rejected that (“First: She’s not my type. Second: It never happened.”) Carroll complained of allegations of defamation. Trump’s lawyers pointed out that as president and thus part of the government, he could not be sued for defamation. Because his statement was made in the White House after questions from journalists.
The question before an appeals court in Washington is whether Trump acted as part of his presidential job. However, Trump could have undermined the line of defense when he recently called the accusation a lie – now definitely as a private person. That gives Carroll an opportunity to update her lawsuit.
Investigating the storming of the Capitol
Trump’s supporters stormed the Houses of Parliament in Washington on January 6, 2021, where Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election was about to be officially sealed. Trump had previously incited her to repeat his false allegations of voter fraud during an appearance at the White House. Members of a committee of inquiry into the attack in the House of Representatives emphasized that they hold Trump responsible:
Because he called on the supporters to march in front of the Capitol and did nothing for hours when they resorted to violence. In October, the committee of inquiry decided to take the rare escalation step of summoning Trump, an ex-president. However, time is short for this, because the newly elected Congress, in which Trump’s Republicans are forecast to have the majority, will meet in January.
On the fringes of the investigation, another legal risk for Trump was revealed. In a lawsuit over the disclosure of an exchange of emails between Trump and one of his attorneys to the committee, a judge found that the then-president knowingly and under oath made false statements about alleged voter fraud in court.
Fraud lawsuit in New York
At the end of September, New York’s Attorney General Letitia James, after years of investigation, presented extensive allegations against Trump, the company named after him and his three children Donald Junior, Eric and Ivanka.
The core: The Trumps would have shown assets larger or smaller as needed, for example to get loans more easily or to pay less taxes. James wants, among other things, that the Trumps have to pay $ 250 million (256 million euros) as compensation. Trump’s company denies the allegations. When questioned under oath, Trump refused to testify – except for his name.
Dispute over tax records
The Treasury Committee of the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives has long been fighting to get Trump’s tax records. Contrary to political practice in the USA, Trump did not make his tax return public either as a presidential candidate or after moving into the White House.
In August, Trump suffered a legal setback in the dispute: a court in Washington ruled that Trump had to release the documents. Trump can appeal against it.
Source: Stern
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