U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan has set Donald Trump’s trial date on four counts of election-related misconduct for trial commencing March 4, 2024 — the day before the Super Tuesday slate of Republican election primaries. “The public has a right to a prompt and efficient resolution of this matter,” Judge Chutkan said, according to the New York Times story on the hearing yesterday.
The overriding consideration in a criminal case is usually deemed the defendant’s right to a fair trial. President Trump will be challenged to mount a defense with three other criminal trials competing for his time and attention among other matters. Indeed, Fulton County prosecutor Miss Fani seeks the setting of trial in the Georgia case on the same date.
As noted above, the March 4 date is the day before the presidential primaries to be held on Super Tuesday. Speaking of election interference, I wonder if Judge Chutkan has any thoughts about the timing.
The colleagues of prosecutor Krazee-Eyez Killa Jack Smith anticipate it will take them four to six weeks to put in their case at trial. Trump’s lawyers estimate a roughly similar amount of time for the defense. The guilty verdict is scheduled to arrive no later than July 4.
If I have that right, Judge Chutkan can order a presentence investigation and schedule sentencing some time in September after Labor Day, as the general election campaign would otherwise be occupying our attention. Perhaps Judge Chutkan may actually be able to have Trump imprisoned before election day. The whole thing presents an impressive example of just-in-time manufacturing.
You can’t tell the trials without a scorecard. The trial of Mr. Killa’s case against Trump seems destined to conflict not only with the Georgia case but also with the Manhattan case involving hush-money payments to Stormy Daniels in advance of the 2016 election. That case is set for trial on March 25. If the trial on the 2020 election-related charges runs more than 11 weeks, it might also conflict with Mr. Killa’s case against Trump et al. in the documents case set for trial in Florida in late May.
Judge Chutkan seems a little cold on the question of her own possible election interference: “Mr. Trump, like any defendant, will have to make the trial date work regardless of his schedule,” Judge Chutkan said, adding that “there is a societal interest to a speedy trial.”
Students of the Constitution may recall that the right to a speedy trial belongs to defendants. The “societal interest” Judge Chutkan has in mind may be related to the just-in-time manufacturing to which the case is now subject.
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