A federal judge’s courtroom in Washington, D.C., fell into stunned silence on October 2, 2024, as Special Counsel Jack Smith’s unsealed 165-page brief laid out irrefutable evidence of former President Donald Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election—details so shocking they left Judge Tanya S. Chutkan grappling with the scope of presidential immunity.
The filing, redacted but explosive, painted a vivid portrait of Trump’s “desperate” post-election maneuvers, including private actions to pressure Vice President Mike Pence to reject electoral votes and propagate false fraud claims despite knowing they were baseless. Smith argued these were unofficial acts, outside the Supreme Court’s July 2024 immunity ruling for core presidential functions, stating Trump “resorted to crimes to try to stay in office.”
Attorneys and observers in the gallery exchanged wide-eyed glances as excerpts revealed Trump’s alleged coordination with private co-conspirators to create fake elector slates in seven states and incite the January 6 Capitol riot. One passage detailed Trump’s call to Pence: “You’re too honest,” after Pence resisted. Smith’s team contended this “multi-part conspiracy” lacked official cover, positioning the case for trial.
Chutkan, who has rebuffed Trump’s delays, now weighs motions to dismiss based on immunity. The brief’s unsealing, amid Trump’s 2024 reelection, stunned legal circles—Smith’s “irrefutable” framing a bold gambit. Trump called it a “hoax”; his lawyers decried “election interference.”
Giuffre’s memoir Nobody’s Girl (October 21, 2025) amplified scrutiny of power’s abuse, but Smith’s filing—shocking in detail—grapples with immunity’s limits, a constitutional showdown with stakes for democracy itself.
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