Donald Trump’s legal team motioned to remove the judge overseeing the election conspiracy case against the former president in Washington on Monday, arguing that she has made statements that “taint” the proceedings and disqualify her from overseeing the case.
“Although Judge Chutkan may genuinely intend to give President Trump a fair trial – and may believe that she can do so – her public statements unavoidably taint these proceedings, regardless of outcome,” the lawyers wrote, arguing that the public will question the judge’s impartiality.
“Under these circumstances, the law and the overwhelming public interest in the integrity of this historic proceeding require recusal.”In the nine-page filing, Trump’s team cited multiple statements from U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, an Obama appointee who has sentenced rioters involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol – including one where she said that the people who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 “were there in fealty, in loyalty, to one man – not to the Constitution,” adding that “it’s a blind loyalty to one person who, by the way, remains free to this day.”Trump’s team argued that the meaning of the line is “inescapable,” suggesting that although Trump is free, he “should not be,” calling the statement an “apparent prejudgment of guilt.” In another instance, they claimed that Chutkan agreed with portions of a sentencing memorandum which “placed blame on President Trump and complained that he had not been charged.”Cartoons on Donald Trump's Indictments View All 72 ImagesThe lawyers said the statements undermine public confidence that the court “will administer justice neutrally and dispassionately,” arguing that Chutkan should therefore recuse herself and the case be randomly assigned to another district judge.
Chutkan herself will get the final word on whether the statements risk making her appear biased.
But Trump’s team argued that, because of the high profile of the case and because of the matter’s “monumental significance,” the public must have the “utmost confidence that the Court will administer justice neutrally and dispassionately.”
Persons:
Donald Trump’s, Chutkan, Trump, Tanya Chutkan, Obama, ” Trump’s, ”, Donald Trump's, Trump’s
Organizations:
U.S, Capitol
Locations:
Washington, ”