The Justice Department has announced that police officers injured or otherwise affected by the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, can sue former President Donald Trump for the violent actions taken by some of his supporters.
In a court filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, Lawyers for the Justice Department dismissed claims by Trump that he's protected by presidential immunity for giving a speech that told supporters to proceed to the U.S. Capitol.
Which many of his followers did.
Presidents typically receive absolute immunity when executing their official duties.
As The Washington Times reports:
The briefing was filed as the appellate court weighs three civil lawsuits accusing Mr.ย Trumpย of inciting the Jan. 6 attack.
The lawsuits were filed by twoย U.S. Capitol Policeย officers and several congressional Democrats. They say Mr.ย Trumpย should be held liable for the physical and psychological injuries they sustained during the riot.
Mr.ย Trumpโs legal team has argued that he is immune from lawsuits, saying his speech to a rally near the White House on Jan. 6 was part of his duties as commander in chief to comment on a matter of public concern.
However, DOJ sees it differently.
CNN concludes:
The January 6 civil cases are currently at a phase where courts are weighing questions about the legal strength of the claims against Trump, and those courts are not yet considering the factual merits of the allegations against the former president. A district court judge previously denied a Trump motion to dismiss the case, finding that the former president was not absolutely immune from the civil January 6 lawsuit.
Special Counsel Jack Smith is leading a parallel federal criminal investigation into efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
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2 Comments
As US citizens we all should sue Nancy Pelosi for refusing help to guard Capitol.
Now THAT would be a great class action lawsuit!