WASHINGTON—A judge temporarily froze criminal proceedings against Donald Trump in the federal case alleging he plotted to overturn the 2020 election results, saying the prosecution shouldn’t advance toward trial while the former president presses immunity claims in higher courts.
In a three-page order on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan said she was halting “any further proceedings that would move this case towards trial or impose additional burdens of litigation on Defendant [Trump].”
Chutkan didn’t move the former president’s trial date of March 4, but indicated she would revisit the timetable once she regains full jurisdiction of the case. Trump, who is the leading contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
A Trump spokesman declared the decision “a big win for President Trump and our rule of law, as it derails Deranged Jack Smith’s rush to judgment strategy of interfering in the 2024 Presidential Election in support of Joe Biden’s campaign.”
