Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday misrepresented in a social media post what the U.S. Supreme Court鈥檚 on presidential immunity means for his .
鈥淭OTAL EXONERATION!鈥� he wrote in the post on his Truth Social platform. 鈥淚t is clear that the Supreme Court鈥檚 Brilliantly Written and Historic Decision ENDS all of Crooked Joe Biden鈥檚 Witch Hunts against me, including the WHITE HOUSE AND DOJ INSPIRED CIVIL HOAXES in New York.鈥�
But none of Trump鈥檚 pending cases have been dismissed as a result of the ruling, nor have the verdicts already reached against him been overturned. The ruling does amount to a major victory for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, whose legal strategy has focused on delaying court proceedings until after the 2024 election.
Here鈥檚 a closer look at the facts.
CLAIM: The Supreme Court鈥檚 ruling that former presidents have means 鈥渢otal exoneration鈥� for former President Donald Trump.
THE FACTS: Although the is a win for Trump, he has not been exonerated and his legal troubles are far from over. A delay of his Washington trial on charges of election interference has been indefinitely extended as a result. Also, he in two other criminal cases, and the verdicts already reached against him in a criminal and a civil case have not been overturned.
Barbara McQuade, a law professor at the University of Michigan and former U.S. attorney for the state鈥檚 Eastern District, told The Associated Press that Trump鈥檚 claim is 鈥渋naccurate for a number of reasons.鈥�
鈥淭he court found immunity from prosecution, not exoneration,鈥� she wrote in an email. 鈥淭he court did not say that Trump鈥檚 conduct did not amount to criminal behavior. Just that prosecutors are not allowed to prosecute him for it because of the special role of a president and the need to permit him to make 鈥榖old鈥� and 鈥榝earless鈥� decisions without concern for criminal consequences.鈥�
McQuade wrote that Trump鈥檚 case over classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago estate won鈥檛 be affected, as it arose from conduct committed after he left the White House. She added that any impact on his New York hush money trial 鈥渟eems unlikely鈥� since the crimes were committed in a personal capacity.
鈥淚n addition, the Court鈥檚 opinion is solely focused on immunity for criminal conduct,鈥� McQuade continued, explaining that it will not protect him from civil liability in his cases regarding defamatory statements about advice columnist E. Jean Carroll or fraudulent business practices conducted at the Trump Organization.
Trump鈥檚 campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Supreme Court鈥檚 conservative majority said former presidents have absolute immunity from prosecution for official acts that fall within their 鈥渆xclusive sphere of constitutional authority鈥� and are presumptively entitled to immunity for all official acts. Unofficial, or private, actions are exempt from such immunity.
This means that special counsel Jack Smith cannot proceed with significant allegations in his of plotting to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss, or he must at least defend their use in future proceedings before the trial judge.
The case has not been dismissed. It was instead sent back to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who must now 鈥渃arefully analyze鈥� whether other allegations involve official conduct for which the president would be immune from prosecution. The trial was supposed to have begun in March, but has been on hold since December to allow Trump to pursue his Supreme Court appeal.
However, the justices did knock out one aspect of the indictment, finding that Trump is 鈥渁bsolutely immune鈥� from prosecution for alleged conduct involving discussions with the Justice Department.
The opinion also stated that Trump is 鈥渁t least presumptively immune鈥� from allegations that he tried to pressure Vice President Mike Pence on Jan. 6, 2021, to reject certification of Democrat Joe Biden鈥檚 electoral vote win. But prosecutors can try to make the case that Trump鈥檚 pressure on Pence can still be part of the case against him, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote.
It is all but certain that the ruling means Trump will not face trial in Washington ahead of the 2024 election, as the need for further analysis is expected to tie up the case for months with legal wrangling over whether actions in the indictment were official or unofficial, .
Trump is in two other criminal cases, one over his alleged interference in Georgia鈥檚 2020 election and the other over classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left the White House. Trump鈥檚 lawyers have asserted presidential immunity in both cases, but a ruling on the matter has not been made in either.
The former president was in his hush money trial in New York. After Monday鈥檚 ruling, the New York judge who presided over that trial until at least September and agreed to weigh the impact of the presidential immunity decision.
Trump was ordered in February to as part of a civil fraud lawsuit, for lying about his wealth for years as he built the real estate empire that vaulted him to stardom and the White House. It is still under appeal.
In May 2023, a jury in 1996 and for defaming her over the allegations, awarding her $5 million. Carroll was awarded in January by a separate jury for Trump鈥檚 continued social media attacks against her. An appeal of the former decision in April. The latter case is still being appealed.
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Melissa Goldin, The Associated Press
