Jack Smith, leading Trump prosecutor, resigns after election win, casting doubt on federal cases over classified docs and 2020 election.
Special Counsel Jack Smith, the lead prosecutor overseeing the federal probes into Donald Trump's efforts to contest his 2020 election loss and the handling of classified material, has exited his post at the Justice Department, as the Republican president-elect gears up for a return to the Oval Office.
Smith formally resigned from the Department of Justice on Friday, as indicated in a Saturday court document submitted to U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, in which he requested the lifting of a stay she had imposed on the release of his concluding report.
The notification of Smith's departure was contained within a footnote in the filing, stating that the Special Counsel had wrapped up his work, filed his final confidential report on January 7, and "separated" from the Justice Department on January 10.
A former war crimes prosecutor, Smith spearheaded two of the four criminal cases that Trump faced after his presidency, but saw them stall after a Trump-appointed jurist in Florida dismissed one and the U.S. Supreme Court – including three Trump appointees – determined that former presidents possess broad immunity from prosecution for actions taken in office. Neither case proceeded to trial.
Following Trump's victory over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the November 5 election, Smith opted to drop both cases, citing a long-held Justice Department principle against prosecuting sitting presidents. In their requests to the courts for dismissal, Smith's team maintained the validity of the charges they had brought, suggesting only that Trump's imminent return to the White House rendered them unsustainable.
Smith's exit marks another milestone in the unraveling of the criminal cases against Trump, which could conclude without any legal repercussions for the incoming president and sparked a backlash that played a role in his political resurgence.
The resignation of Smith from the Justice Department was anticipated. Trump, who has frequently labeled Smith "deranged," had stated his intention to terminate Smith immediately upon assuming office on January 20, and has hinted at the possibility of pursuing retribution against Smith and others involved in the investigations against him once he is back in power.
Trump made history in 2023 as the first sitting or former U.S. president to face criminal charges, initially in New York, where he was accused of attempting to conceal a hush money payment to a pornographic actress during his 2016 presidential bid. Smith's charges followed, alleging that Trump unlawfully retained classified documents after leaving office and sought to overturn his 2020 defeat, an effort that culminated in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Prosecutors in Georgia have also filed charges against Trump concerning his efforts to reverse his election loss in that state.
TRUMP ALLEGED POLITICAL BIAS
Trump denied any wrongdoing and decried the prosecutions as politically motivated attempts to undermine his campaign. He capitalized on courthouse appearances to raise millions in campaign donations and used the cases to promote a narrative that the political establishment was aligned against him and his supporters.
The Justice Department defended the cases, asserting that they were conducted by career prosecutors operating independently of political influence.
Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith in November 2022 – nearly two years after the Capitol attack – to lead the Justice Department's dual ongoing investigations into Trump. This action occurred shortly after Trump announced his campaign to reclaim the presidency in the 2024 election.
Garland, an appointee of Democratic President Joe Biden, stated that Smith would provide a measure of independence in the highly sensitive investigations. Garland had previously resisted calls to appoint a special prosecutor, maintaining his ability to adequately oversee the Trump probes.
Smith returned to Washington from The Hague, where he prosecuted war crimes stemming from the 1998-1999 Kosovo War. He previously headed the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section and served in the federal prosecutor’s office in Brooklyn, New York, earning a reputation as a relentless investigator.
At The Hague, Smith secured the conviction of Salih Mustafa, a former Kosovo Liberation Army commander who oversaw a prison where acts of torture occurred during the conflict.
UNPRECEDENTED LEGAL ACTION
The indictments, representing the first federal criminal cases against a former U.S. president, accused Trump of taking highly sensitive national security documents to his Florida resort and employing false claims of voter fraud in an attempt to obstruct the counting and certification of votes following his 2020 election loss.
"The attack on our nation's Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was an unprecedented assault on the seat of American democracy. As described in the indictment, it was fueled by lies - lies by the defendant, targeted at obstructing the bedrock function of the U.S. government," Smith stated when announcing the election indictment in August 2023, one of only two public addresses he gave during his investigation.
Smith faced a narrow timeframe to conclude both prosecutions, given the likelihood that Trump could terminate them upon winning the election. Both faced legal obstacles.
In the classified documents case, Florida-based U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, dismissed all charges in July after ruling that Smith's appointment as special counsel was improper.
Smith’s office appealed that decision. Prosecutors have dropped the appeal concerning Trump following his election victory but have indicated their intention to continue pursuing the revival of charges against two Trump associates accused of obstructing the investigation.
The election case was put on hold for several months while Trump's legal team pursued an appeal for presidential immunity. The U.S. Supreme Court largely sided with Trump in August, ruling that Trump could not be prosecuted for many official actions taken during his presidency, leading to further delays in the case.
Smith acknowledged in court documents that his team faced an “unprecedented circumstance” following Trump's victory over Democrat Kamala Harris. His office concluded that both cases could not proceed.
Trump was found guilty of falsifying business records following a trial in the New York hush money case, which was brought by state prosecutors. His sentencing has been delayed indefinitely following his election win, and Trump's legal team is seeking its complete dismissal.
The Georgia case, which also includes charges against 14 Trump allies, remains in limbo while an appeals court considers whether the lead prosecutor, Fani Willis, should be disqualified for alleged misconduct related to a romantic relationship with a former top deputy. The case against Trump is unlikely to progress while he remains president.