Judge Chutkan Calls Off Trump Trial Date

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan has called off the trial date set in former President Donald Trump's federal election subversion case, according to court documents.

Trump is facing four felony charges in which he's accused of attempting to remain in office after losing the 2020 election to President Joe Biden. The former president has pleaded not guilty to all counts in the case.

A trial date for the case, led by Special Prosecutor Jack Smith, was previously set for March 4. But with an outstanding appeals decision on whether Trump should be granted presidential immunity in the case, Chutkan vacated that schedule in an order filed on Friday. A new schedule will be set at a later time, pending the appeals court ruling.

There were signs earlier this week that the case could be delayed for months—the March 4 trial date was removed from the public calendar for the federal court in Washington, D.C., as of Thursday. Trump has sought to delay the trial until after the 2024 presidential election in November, in which he's the front-runner for the Republican nomination.

Chutkan said during a proceeding on Friday that she was unsure when a new trial date would be set, adding that she did "not know what my schedule will be in mid-April," according to a report by Politico's senior legal affairs reporter Kyle Cheney, who was the only journalist to attend the brief hearing.

When contacted by Newsweek, Smith's office declined comment. Newsweek on Friday also reached out to Trump's campaign via email.

Smith and fellow Justice Department prosecutors have sought to expedite the trial, including asking the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on whether Trump was immune from facing charges in connection with his actions during his presidency. The high court denied Smith's request in December.

Trump has argued that presidents should be given immunity for all actions, including ones that "cross the line," saying that without such it would be "impossible" for them to "properly function."

"Any mistake, even if well intended, would be met with almost certain indictment by the opposing party at term end," the former president wrote in a Truth Social post last month.

Trump has also sought to delay his other criminal trials until after November's election, arguing that the proceedings are a form of election interference.

The former president is scheduled for New York City court on March 25 over alleged hush money payments made to adult-film star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign.

A trial date was also set for May 20 in the Trump's classified documents case in Florida, although that investigation has also been plagued by delays.

Update 2/2/24, 4:36 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and background.