UPDATED: Where Trump's Many Court Cases Stand Now
The following is a quick reference page for where things stand currently (as of April 4, 2024) in the five ongoing civil and criminal cases Donald Trump faces in state and federal court.
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Election Interference (State Court, Fulton County, GA)
Trump and 18 others were charged in August, 2023, by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis with participating in a scheme to illegally try to overturn the Georgia results in the 2020 presidential election. All 19 defendants were charged under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). Trump also was charged with 12 additional criminal counts, including solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, filing false documents, false statements and writings, and assorted conspiracy charges.
Since that time, four co-defendants have taken plea deals, that will require them to testify truthfully in the trial against Trump and other co-defendants in exchange for a lighter sentence.
In September of 2023, Scott Hall, a bail bondsman who was charged with tampering with voting machine equipment during the 2020 election, pleaded guilty to five counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with performance of election duties. Hall was sentenced to serve five years of probation, complete 200 hours of community service, pay a $5,000 fine and write an apology letter to the citizens of Georgia.
Former Trump Lawyer Sidney Powell, pleaded guilty on Oct. 19, 2023, for assisting Trump in attempting to overturn the 2020 election. Powell pleaded guilty to six misdemeanor counts for conspiracy to commit intentional interference with performance of election duties stemming from her efforts to overturn the 2020 election, and her role in aiding a breach of election equipment in Coffee County, Georgia. She will be sentenced to six years of probation, a $6,000 fine and required to pay $2,700 in restitution.
Former Trump Attorney Kenneth Chesebro, pleaded guilty on Oct. 20, 2023, to on felony charge of assisting to devise a plot to put forth a set of fake electors that would keep Trump in power following Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 election. His plea deal will sentence him to five years of probation, $5,000 in restitution, 100 hours of community service and to “truthfully testify” in other trials in the case.
Former Trump lawyer, Jenna Ellis, pleaded guilty on Oct. 24, 2023, to one count of one count of “aiding and abetting false statements and writings” by trying to convince members of the Georgia Senate to violate their oaths of office and falsely declare that Donald Trump was the winner for in the State of Georgia.
In exchange for avoiding a jury trial, Ellis agreed to complete five years of probation, pay $5,000 in restitution to the Georgia Secretary of State, complete 100 hours of community service and write an apology letter to the state of Georgia.
A federal judge has rejected attempts by five of the defendants to move their charges to federal court, and all five have appealed that ruling. On Wednesday, February 28, 2024, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to hear Mark Meadows’ appeal.
Prosecutors have asked Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee for a trial of the remaining defendants to begin on Aug. 5, 2024, and Trump and some other defendants have objected to that date. For the past two weeks, during several full days of testimony, McAfee has been hearing from witnesses who purportedly have information on the allegations made by defendants, seeking to show a conflict of interest and ethical violations from the DA in this case.
McAfee will hear summary arguments today on whether District Attorney Fani Willis and her special prosecutor - with whom she had a romantic relationship - will be disqualified from pursuing their investigation and subsequent indictment of former President Donald Trump. Trump’s RICO charge alone carries a penalty of five to 20 years in prison.
UPDATE as of April 4, 2024:
On March 15, 2024, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee determined that District Attorney Fani Willis could continue to lead the prosecution of Donald Trump, et. al., as long as her top deputy, Nathan Wade agreed to step down. That same day, Mr. Wade formally resigned his position on the case. On March 20, the judge confirmed that Trump and his co-defendants could appeal his decision.
Donald Trump and eight other defendants accused of illegally trying to interfere in the 2020 election in Georgia, submitted a formal application on March 29, 2024, to appeal Judge McAfee’s ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to remain on the case. Pursuant to the law, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has 45 days to decide whether it will take up the matter. (11th Cir. R. 35-2).
McAfee has stated that he will continue to move forward with the case in the interim and a motions hearing was held on Thursday to address technical legal argument in a filing from Trump, and another on two pretrial motions by co-defendant David Shafer. On April 4, Judge McAfee rejected Donald Trump's motion to dismiss his case on First Amendment grounds saying, "the state is not merely attempting to criminalize political speech" with these charges.
Election Interference (Federal Court, Washington, DC)
Federal Prosecutors at the Department of Justice, led by Special Counsel Jack Smith, charged Donald Trump with four counts on August 1, 2023:
Conspiracy to defraud the United States "by using dishonesty, fraud and deceit to obstruct the nation’s process of collecting, counting, and certifying the results of the presidential election" (18 U.S.C. § 371.
Obstruction of an official Congressional proceeding on Jan. 6, 2021. (18 U.S.C. § 1512(k)).
Obstruction and Conspiracy to Obstruct and impede, the certification of the electoral vote. (18 U.S.C. §§ 1512(c)(2), 2)
Conspiracy to prevent others from carrying out their constitutional right to vote and to have that vote counted (18 U.S.C. § 241).
The most serious charges carry up to 20 years in prison, but the sentencing decision will be up to the judge, so sentencing is difficult to predict at this time.
United States District Judge Tanya Chutkan scheduled the trial to begin in federal court on March 4, 2024, but the case has been temporality paused for Trump to pursue his presidential immunity claim in appeals court. In February, Chutkan formally postponed the trial with no new trial date set at this time.
The Supreme Court has decided to hear oral arguments in this case, and will hold an expedited hearing the week of April 22, 2024, over whether Trump has immunity from being prosecuted for election interference. This ruling could determine whether Trump stands trial in the case before the November Presidential Election.
Classified Documents (Federal Court, Florida)
On June 8, 2023, Special Counsel Jack Smith charged Donald Trump with 37 counts involving illegally retaining classified documents taken with him from the White House to Mar-a-Lago after he left office in January 2021, and then obstructing government demands to give them back. In July of 2023, additional charges were levied against Trump, accusing him of conspiring to ask a staffer to delete surveillance video at the property, and withholding a document. Former Trump aide Walt Nauta also faces charges in the indictment for allegedly removing boxes at Mar-a-Lago.
Counts 1-31: Willful Retention of National Defense Information (18 USC §793(e)).
Count 32: Conspiracy to Obstruct Justice (18 USC § 1512(k)).
Count 33: Withholding a Document of Record (18 USC §§1512(b)(2)(A), (2)).
Count 34: Corruptly Concealing a Document or Record (18 USC §§1512(c)(1), (2)).
Count 35: Concealing a Document in a Federal Investigation (18 USC §§1519, 2).
Count 36: Scheme to Conceal (18 USC §§1001(a)(1), (2)).
Count 37: False Statements and Representations 18 USC §§1001(a)(2), (2))
The 49-page indictment centers on hundreds of classified documents that Trump took with him from the White House to Mar-a-Lago upon leaving office in January 2021. Even as “tens of thousands of members and guests” visited Mar-a-Lago between the end of Trump’s presidency and August 2022, when the FBI obtained a search warrant, documents were recklessly stored in spaces including a "ballroom, a bathroom and shower, and office space, his bedroom, and a storage room.”
Prosecutors have labeled this a Pentagon “plan of attack” based on what he told witnesses who visited at Mar-a-Lago. The indictment alleges that Trump shared a classified map related to an ongoing military operation, and improperly stored boxes containing classified documents at his Florida home. Federal prosecutors have also accused the former president of defying requests from the Justice Department to hand over classified documents, making false statements to the FBI and tapping his aides to help hide boxes of records.
Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, has set a trial start date May 20, 2024, in Fort Pierce, Florida. Trump’s attorneys continue to file motions to have the date pushed back in an effort to avoid going to trial before the November 2024 election. On Thursday, February 29, 2024, lawyers for Trump filed a motion to postpone trial until August 12, arguing that that he can’t have a "fair trial" while running for president. Trump appointee Judge Cannon will hold a hearing today.
Update as of April 4, 2024:
US District Court Judge Aileen M. Cannon instructed lawyers to file proposed jury instructions by April 2, and held a hearing on the issues. In that hearing, Cannon sounded skeptical that Trump’s attack on the Espionage Act, or his embrace of the Presidential Records Act, were strong enough to outright dismiss the charges against him. At the same time, she suggested that aspects of Trump’s arguments might be valid enough to come into play during jury instructions.
On April 2, Special Counsel Jack Smith filed a motion with the Court correctly arguing that Judge Cannon’s proposed order for jury instructions on Presidential Records Act (PRA) protections is “fundamentally flawed," and asked that Trump’s motion arguing PRA protections be denied now, so he can appeal to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals before any court error occurs.
On April 4, Judge Cannon issued a brief order rejecting Trump's Presidential Records Act defense argument, but kept open the possibility that Trump could still use the argument to defend himself at trial or bring it up in other pre-trial proceedings. The original trial was scheduled to begin in May, but this date will likely be pushed back. Special Counsel Jack Smith has proposed a July 8 start date, but Judge Cannon has yet to set the date.
Hush Money Payments (State Court, New York)
Donald Trump was indicted in New York City on March 30, 2023, on charges involving a scheme to bury allegations of extramarital affairs that arose during his first White House campaign in 2016, by making illegal payments to Stormy Daniels through his former lawyer, Michael Cohen. In this indictment, Trump is charged with 34 counts of Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree.
Trump has attempted several times to move this case to federal court but these requests have all been denied. Trump has also filed two requests to have Judge Merchan replaced, but both of those motions have also been denied.
Judge Juan Manuel Merchan has scheduled Trump’s trial to start March 25, 2024, which will place this case front and center during Trump’s 2024 Presidential Campaign. There’s a chance the New York trial start date could change due to possible scheduling conflicts with Trump’s other criminal cases. Merchan has said he’ll wait to see if the New York trial needs to be postponed. This will likely happen if a Supreme Court ruling on Trump’s immunity case is issued that accelerates his Washington, DC, federal case.
Update as of April 4, 2024:
On March 26, 2024, Judge Merchan issued a gag order against Donald Trump that prohibits him from attacking witnesses, prosecutors and jurors, citing "sufficient risk to the administration of justice." On the same day, Merchan also denied Trump's motion to vacate the judge’s previous orders, and warned counsel for Trump that he has the ability to issue criminal contempt charges against the defendant.
On April 2, 2024, Judge Merchan amended his original gag order against Trump, barring him from publicly commenting on family members of the court, after Trump posted comments on his Truth Social platform about Merchan’s daughter. This new gag order now includes Merchan's daughter and any relatives of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
On April 3, 2024, Judge Merchan denied Trump's request to use a presidential immunity argument in his defense, as well as his motion to delay the trial's start date until the United States Supreme Court rules on his pending immunity claims. The trial is still scheduled to begin on April 15th.
Civil Fraud (State Case, New York)
On February 16, 2024, Judge Arthur Engoron ordered Donald Trump and certain members of his organization, to pay $355 million in penalties, plus interest. Trump filed a motion with the appeals court to issue a stay in the amount of money he must pay to pursue his appeal, but that request was quickly denied.
Appellate Judge Anil Singh rejected Trump's offer of a $100 million bond, though he did give Trump leeway that could help him secure the necessary bond before New York Attorney General Letitia James seeks to enforce the judgment starting March 25, 2024.
Update as of April 4, 2024:
A New York Appeals Court formally lowered the amount of Donald Trump’s required bond to appeal the judgement in the case on March 25, 2024, from $454 million to a far smaller bond of $175 million, after Trump argued that the full payment would be a “practical impossibility.” Trump was given 10 days to make the payment to the court.
Donald Trump was finally able to post a $175 million bond on April 1, 2024. Trump’s last minute Monday bond was secured through the Knight Specialty Insurance Company, a business which is a part of several other companies owned by California businessman and billionaire Don Hankey. Mr. Hankey was placed 128th on Forbes’s 400 List in 2023, and 317th on the magazine’s Billionaire Roster for the same year.
For more on this story read: How Trump Posted His Bond.
Amee Vanderpool writes the SHERO Newsletter and hosts the live SHERO podcast on Callin. She is an attorney, published author, contributor to newspapers and magazines, and analyst for BBC radio. She can be reached at avanderpool@gmail.com or follow her on Twitter @girlsreallyrule.
Paid subscriptions and one-time tributes embedded in each article allow me to keep publishing critical and informative work that is sometimes made available to the public — thank you. If you like this piece and want to support independent journalism further, you can forward this article to others, get a paid subscription or gift subscription, or donate once, as much as you like today.
Sheri is 👑💙📣
She has the gift of writing, exactly, as it is.
He’s not going to jail ever is he? I hate to be a pessimist but I’m highly disappointed in our justice system. Any other person besides him would have been in jail by now. This whole thing is embarrassing. The fact that he’s even allowed to run for president is a joke.