SCOTUS rules former Presidents have total immunity from prosecution for official acts

They ruled Trump was immune for one act, and sent other acts being litigated back down to the lower courts

In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court has ruled that Former Presidents have absolute immunity from prosecution for official acts.

The foundation of their opinion is based in the Separation of Powers, and what makes an act of the Executive Branch official, or unofficial.

They ruled that actions taken by the President, even in the outer perimeter of the Executive Branch’s authority, are at least entitled to presumptive immunity, meaning that any actions taken by the President must be litigated on to determine whether the acts under prosecutorial scrutiny are official acts or not.

They also ruled that unofficial acts are not entitled to absolute immunity.

The Court stated that the Executive is vested with these powers, powers that must be entitled to immunity based on the historical context surrounding the founder’s intent behind the separation of powers.

The framers, according to the Court, did so to provide for a “vigorous” and “energetic” executive branch that would be able to make decisions and take action, without being unduly concerned or cautious about doing so, in fear of future criminal liability.

They held that Congress cannot act, and the Judicial Branch cannot examine the President’s action when they are exercising such authorities — meaning there can be no litigation on the potential criminality of any official actions, at least not prior to a determination of whether such acts were in fact official, or not.

It was also held that the courts may not inquire into the President’s motives with regard to any official actions taken.

The Court ruled that Trump is immune from criminal liability for using the Justice Department to convince State’s to use his illegitimate electors instead of their legitimate ones, based on the separation of powers and that this was an official act.

However, in terms of most other Trump related issues being litigated, SCOTUS remanded them back down to the lower courts for further review following their ruling. They must now make determinations about whether other acts are considered official or unofficial acts before proceeding with any criminal proceedings.