The Ministry of Justice issued the first volume of Special Counsel Jack Smith His final report on his now-closed investigations into President-elect Donald Trump, days before he is sworn into office.
Attorney General Merrick Garland released the first volume, focusing on the election case against Trump, of the Smith report on Tuesday at midnight after wrangling in the federal court system.
An opening letter from Smith to Garland said it was “laughable” that Trump believed the Biden administration, or other political actors, influenced or directed his decisions as attorney general, suggesting he was guided by federal prosecutorial principles.
“Trump’s cases represent those in which the crime was the most flagrant, the public harm was greatest, and the evidence was most certain,” Smith said, referring to the principles.
Federal judge blocks special counsel Jack Smith from releasing final report
Split photo featuring US Attorney General Merrick Garland, President Donald Trump and Special Counsel Jack Smith (Ting Chen/Bloomberg via Getty Images | Photography by Rebecca Noble/Getty Images | Photography by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
In the lengthy report, Smith said his office fully stands behind the decision to bring criminal charges against Trump because he “resorted to a series of criminal efforts to retain power” after his loss. 2020 elections.
Smith said in his conclusion that the two sides were determining whether any material in the “supercharge indictment was subject to presidential immunity” when it became clear that Trump had won the 2024 election. The department then decided that the case should be dismissed before he took office because of how it interpreted the Constitution.
“The Department’s view that the Constitution prohibits the continued impeachment and trial of the President is categorical and does not depend on the seriousness of the crimes charged, the strength of the government’s evidence, or the merits of the trial, which the Office fully supports.” “, according to the report.
In an early Tuesday morning post on the website Truth Social, Trump called Smith “desperate” and “mentally deranged” for posting his “fake results” in the middle of the night.
The appeals court will not block the partial release of special counsel Jack Smith's report on Trump
Former Garland appointed Ministry of Justice official Jack Smith as special advisor in November 2022.
Smith, a former assistant US attorney and head of the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section, led the investigation into Trump's retention of classified documents after leaving the White House and whether the former president obstructed the federal government's investigation into the matter.
Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Tuesday, September 24, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Smith was also charged with overseeing the investigation into whether Trump or other officials and entities interfered with the peaceful transfer of power following the 2020 presidential election, including the certification of the Electoral College vote on January 6, 2021.
Smith accused Trump in both cases, but Trump pleaded not guilty.
The confidential records case was dismissed in July 2024 by U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida Judge Eileen Cannon, who ruled that Smith was illegally appointed as special counsel.
Special Prosecutor Jack Smith recently requested that charges against Trump be dropped in a case alleging his interference in certifying the 2020 election. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Smith accused Trump in the US District Court in Washington, DC, in his case related to the 2020 elections, but after Trump was elected president, Smith sought to have the case dismissed. Judge Tanya Chutkan granted this request.
But this month, Cannon temporarily blocked the release of Smith's final report. A Federal Court of Appeal She overturned her ruling, allowing the Justice Department to make Smith's report public.
Former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. (Charles Trainor Jr./Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
in Classified records In the investigation, Smith charged Trump with 37 federal charges, including willful retention of national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and making false statements. Trump pleaded not guilty.
This photo in a court filing filed by the Justice Department on August 30, 2022, and partially redacted by the source, shows a photo of documents seized during the FBI's August 8 search of former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. . (Department of Justice via AP)
Trump was also charged with three additional counts as part of a superseding indictment from the investigation: an additional count of willful retention of national defense information and two additional counts of obstruction.
In the 2020 election case, Smith accused Trump of conspiring to defraud the United States; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; violation of an official procedure; And conspiracy against rights. Trump pleaded not guilty.
The cases Smith brought against Trump did not reach trial in either jurisdiction.
Former US President Donald Trump walks to speak to the press at the end of the day during his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 7, 2024 in New York City. (Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Despite efforts by Trump's lawyers to block the report's release, Attorney General Merrick Garland has confirmed that he will make at least one volume of the Smith report public.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
