Justice department wants ‘speedy trial’ for Trump after former US president charged

The US Justice Department will seek a “speedy trial” for former president Donald Trump over allegations he sought to overturn the 2020 election, special counsel Jack Smith said on Tuesday.

Smith said an assault on the US Capitol building on January 6, 2021 by Trump supporters was “fueled by lies” by the defendant aimed at obstructing certification of his Democratic rival Joe Biden’s election victory.

“My office will seek a speedy trial so that our evidence can be tested in court and judged by a jury of citizens,” Smith told reporters.

What Trump is charged with

Donald Trump was indicted on Tuesday over his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 US election — the most serious legal threat yet to the former president.

Trump is charged with three counts of conspiracy and one count of obstruction in the 45-page indictment brought by special counsel Jack Smith.

Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, is accused of conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding: the January 6, 2021 joint session of Congress held to certify Democrat Joe Biden’s election victory.

“The purpose of the conspiracy was to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election by using knowingly false claims of election fraud,” the indictment said.

© Agence France-Presse