Donald Trump is in Washington, D.C. today, at the E. Barrett Prettyman Courthouse, where his lawyers will appeal he should be entitled to presidential immunity from prosecution by Jack Smith over January 6th.
Trump’s lawyers are also expected to argue the prosecution violates the principle of double jeopardy — meaning a man should not be tried twice for the same offense — as he was already cleared of wrongdoing over January 6th in the Senate trial which followed the Democrats’ failed impeachment of him in 2021.
The appeal will be heard by one George H. W. Bush appointee, Karen LeCraft Henderson, and two Joe Biden appointees, Florence Y. Pan and Michelle Childs.
You can listen here from around 0930 EST:
Smith had sought to skip the D.C. Court of Appeals and take the case directly to the Supreme Court, but Trump successfully argued against it. This means even if the current panel rules against Trump, he can appeal to be heard by the entire D.C. Court of Appeals en banc, and then finally the Supreme Court.
Even if Trump loses all of these appeals in D.C., a Democrat-dominated city, the delay helps the former President. His trial will likely have to be delayed under after the November elections if the D.C. appeals are not completed until relatively late in 2024.
While cameras and generally disallowed in federal courthouses, members of the public can listen to audio from the appeal hearing live from 9:30 a.m. EST.