Special Counsel Jack Smith filed a superseding indictment in the election interference case against former President Donald Trump on Tuesday, downgrading the allegations against the 2024 presidential candidate in light of the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling.
Prosecutors did not drop any of the four counts they initially brought against the former president in the 2020 election subversion case, but a recently amended indictment dropped some of Trump’s alleged conduct, including allegations of attempts to use the Justice Department to advance his interests and false claims of election fraud.
It also changes how prosecutors describe the allegations they continue to make about Trump’s plots to subvert the election.
“The superseding indictment, presented to a new grand jury that had not previously heard evidence in this case, reflects the government’s efforts to respect and enforce the Supreme Court’s rulings and pretrial detention instructions in Trump v. Trump United States,” the Special Counsel’s Office said.
The new indictment removed allegations that Trump tried to pressure the US Justice Department to maintain the indictment against the former president after the Supreme Court ruled that he could not be prosecuted for the conduct.
