Justice Dept: Trump Can Be Sued By Police For Jan. 6 Actions
Mar 2, 2023 18:23:23 GMT -5
birdgal likes this
Post by tnthomas on Mar 2, 2023 18:23:23 GMT -5
When criminal charges seem out of reach the Civil Courts can extract a measure of justice sometimes.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump can be sued by injured Capitol Police officers and Democratic lawmakers over the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, the Justice Department said Thursday in a federal court case testing Trump’s legal vulnerability and the limits of executive power.
The department wrote that although a president enjoys broad legal latitude to communicate to the public on matters of concern, “no part of a President’s official responsibilities includes the incitement of imminent private violence. By definition, such conduct plainly falls outside the President’s constitutional and statutory duties.”
The brief was filed by lawyers of the Justice Department’s Civil Division and has no bearing on a separate criminal investigation by a department special counsel into whether Trump can be criminally charged over efforts to undo Democrat Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election ahead of the Capitol riot. In fact, the lawyers note that they are not taking a position with respect to potential criminal liability for Trump or anyone else.
The Justice Department wrote that it also takes no view on a lower court judge’s conclusion that those who sued Trump have “plausibly” alleged that his speech caused the riot. Nevertheless, the department said that an appeals court should reject Trump’s claim that he’s immune from the lawsuits.
The department wrote that although a president enjoys broad legal latitude to communicate to the public on matters of concern, “no part of a President’s official responsibilities includes the incitement of imminent private violence. By definition, such conduct plainly falls outside the President’s constitutional and statutory duties.”
The brief was filed by lawyers of the Justice Department’s Civil Division and has no bearing on a separate criminal investigation by a department special counsel into whether Trump can be criminally charged over efforts to undo Democrat Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election ahead of the Capitol riot. In fact, the lawyers note that they are not taking a position with respect to potential criminal liability for Trump or anyone else.
The Justice Department wrote that it also takes no view on a lower court judge’s conclusion that those who sued Trump have “plausibly” alleged that his speech caused the riot. Nevertheless, the department said that an appeals court should reject Trump’s claim that he’s immune from the lawsuits.