Judge limits new filings in Trump Jan. 6 case but denied bid to hold special counsel in contempt

https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4416268-trump-election-case-judge-limits-new-filings/

Background: Donald Trump filed a motion attempting to dismiss the J6 case against Jack Smith in Judge Chutkan's courtroom based on Presidential Immunity and Double Jeopardy. Chutkan denied. Trump appealed. Based on recent Supreme Court precedent, once Trump appeals, the existing court no longer has jurisdiction, and anything that moves the case toward trial must stop until the appeal is finalized. Chutkan, despite being annoyed, complied with the law and ordered Jack Smith to cease any work designed to bring the case toward trial. The reason for this is that if the defendant is correct that the case cannot be filed, they are not supposed to be harmed by the prosecution during the appeal.

In response, Jack Smith continued making files and blatantly disobeyed the judge's order, promising to keep violating it, which he did on multiple occasions. Trump's defense filed motions demanding Chutkan order Smith to stop his illegal filings, and when he continued despite her order, they asked he be held in contempt.

Clearly, Chutkan wouldn't hold Jack Smith in contempt despite him obviously deserving of being. She's been an accomplice in violating his rights up until this point, notably telling the defense they only had a few months to review 13 million pages of discovery because Trump should have been reviewing all public and private documents (even those not in possession) in case he was charged with a crime without even knowing which documents the prosecution would use or what charges, if any, would be filed. The goal of Chutkan and Smith is to make sure the trial begins the day before Super Tuesday to try to prevent his presidential run. It's likely any verdict in this courtroom won't fully withstand an appeal due to numerous procedural violations. But that's not the point. A verdict that sticks is less useful than preventing him from being elected.

Jack Smith has repeatedly said that his illegal filings were all intended to ensure the case moves toward trial as quickly as possible, a blatant violation of the judge's order and the Supreme Court's interpretation of the law. Trump was supposed to be free of the burden of Jack Smith's litigation in Chutkan's courtroom while he was litigating the case in the appellate court.