He is fighting a ruling denying him presidential immunity in the federal election interference case.
Image source, Getty ImagesEx-US President Donald Trump has asked the Supreme Court to suspend a lower court ruling that he does not have presidential immunity from prosecution.
Mr Trump had claimed in his election interference case that he could not be tried for acts that he said fell within his duties as president.
Three lower court judges disagreed, ruling that he can be prosecuted like any other citizen.
Anticipating an appeal, they gave him until Monday to file for a stay.
In his filing on Monday, Mr Trump has requested America’s highest court to stay the ruling of the lower DC Circuit court while he pursues an appeal. He also indicated that he may request an en banc hearing – requesting a stay so that he could also ask all of the judges on circuit court to rehear the case.
The next step, where the conservative-leaning Supreme Court grants or denies Mr Trump’s request for a stay, could come quickly.
The Supreme Court granting the request will lead to a long delay in the landmark criminal case alleging that Mr Trump plotted to illegally overturn the 2020 election, possibly pushing a resolution until after the November election.
The three-judge panel from the DC Circuit court, made up of one Republican appointee and two Democratic ones, had said that “any executive immunity that may have protected him while he served as president no longer protects him against this prosecution”.