Appeals Court Upholds Gag Order Limiting Former President Trump’s Public Statements in Criminal Investigation Case

A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C. has ruled to reinstate key aspects of a gag order limiting what former President Donald Trump can say in the case involving his alleged attempts to thwart the transfer of power after the 2020 presidential election. The unanimous three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the order from U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan to the extent that it prohibits the former president from making public statements about potential witnesses in the case “concerning their potential participation in the investigation or in this criminal proceeding.”

The appeals court ruled that “some aspects of Mr. Trump’s public statements pose a significant and imminent threat to the fair and orderly adjudication of the ongoing criminal proceeding, warranting a speech-constraining protective order.”

Trump is now barred from making public comments about potential witnesses and prosecutors in the case, as well as lawyers in the case other than the special counsel, members of court staff and lawyers’ staff, and their family members.

The court’s ruling comes after Trump’s lawyers argued that the gag order was an unconstitutional violation of the former president’s First Amendment rights. Trump’s lawyers also argued that the order was overly broad and could potentially prevent him from speaking out on matters of public interest.

The appeals court, however, disagreed and ruled that the gag order was necessary to protect the integrity of the ongoing criminal investigation. The court noted that Trump’s public statements have the potential to influence witnesses and jurors, and that the order was necessary to ensure a fair and impartial trial.