DC judge sets timeline for Jack Smith's superseding indictment case against Trump over J6

Following the first hearing held in the case since the Supreme Court’s July presidential immunity ruling, Judge Tanya Chutkan set up the timeline of pretrial dates in the January 6 case brought forth against 2024 GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump by special counsel Jack Smith.

In a court filing, Chutkan ordered the prosecution to complete all evidentiary disclosures by September 10. Reply briefs from Trump’s team in support of two motions they filed are due on September 19. "The Reply briefs shall also identify any specific evidence related to Presidential immunity that Defendant believes the Government has improperly withheld," Chutkan wrote of the defense's reply brief.

Smith’s opening brief on presidential immunity is due by September 26, and Trump’s response is due October 17. The government’s reply and opposition is due October 29. "After briefing, the court will determine whether further proceedings are necessary." The October 29 deadline comes just one week before the election.

Additional due dates include one on October 3 for Trump attorneys to file a supplement for his Motion to Dismiss Based on Statutory Grounds, and October 24 for Trump attorneys to file a "Request for Leave to File a Motion to Dismiss Based on the Appointments and Appropriations Clauses." The prosecution’s replies are due on October 17 for the former, and November 7 for the latter. 

During the hearing, Chutkan said, "The electoral process, and the timing of the election, and what needs to happen before or after an election, are not relevant here. This court is not concerned with an election schedule," Roll Call reported.

On July 1, the Supreme Court issued its ruling on presidential immunity, an issue raised by Trump's team in the January 6 case. The high court ruled that a president has immunity for official acts, but not for unofficial ones, and handed the case back to the lower court to determine what is official and unofficial.

Special counsel Jack Smith filed a superseding indictment in late August that charges Trump with the same four counts present in the initial 2023 indictment, but removes references to the Justice Department, communications with which the Supreme Court determined to be within official duties. Trump has pleaded not guilty to the superseding indictment.  
 

According to CBS News, the hearing and the order reaffirmed that a trial in the case would not take place before the election. She said in the hearing that discussing a possible trial date would be an "exercise in futility." 

Trump J6 Trial Schedule by Hannah Nightingale on Scribd