The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit has rejected former US president Donald Trump’s appeal for an ‘en banc’ review of a gag order issued against him. The gag order, originally imposed by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan in October, restricts Trump from making public statements that could potentially influence trial witnesses or the jury pool in his ongoing criminal trial over alleged interference in the 2020 presidential election.
The gag order prevents Trump, and his counsel, from making “any public statements” that target “the Special Counsel prosecuting this case or his staff; defense counsel or their staff; any of this court’s staff or other supporting personnel; or any reasonably foreseeable witness or the substance of their testimony”. Following the imposition of this order, the former President appealed it.
A three-judge panel of the appeals court upheld the majority of the order on December 8, stressing the seriousness of their decision. However, they did admit to finding certain aspects of the order overly broad, thus allowing Trump the freedom to criticize the Biden administration, the Justice Department, and to assert that the prosecution led by special counsel Jack Smith is politically motivated.
Trump, who is facing charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results, has pled not guilty. His legal team argues that Chutkan’s gag order is a violation of his First Amendment rights, particularly when it comes to his campaigning for a potential return to the presidency.
With the decision of the appeals court now confirmed, the focus in legal circles moves on to whether Trump’s appeal regarding the gag order will be taken up by the Supreme Court. For the full story, visit jurist.org.