
Former US President Donald Trump has entered a plea of not guilty to the charges presented in special counsel Jack Smith’s revised election subversion indictment against him in federal court, according to a court filing reported by CNN on Tuesday.
The not guilty plea was made in a filing in which Trump also requested to be excused from attending an upcoming court hearing in person, according to CNN.
“I, President Donald J. Trump, the above-named defendant … do hereby waive my right to be present at Arraignment and I authorize my attorneys to enter a plea of not guilty on my behalf to each and every count of the superseding indictment,” Trump stated in the one-page document, which featured his signature. “I further state that I have received a copy of the superseding indictment and reviewed it with my counsel.”
The first court hearing in the case before Judge Tanya Chutkan, which had been delayed for the US Supreme Court to assess the extent of presidential immunity Trump is entitled to, is scheduled for Thursday.
Trump’s legal team plans to attend the hearing.
Smith filed the updated indictment last week, streamlining the allegations against the 2024 presidential candidate in response to the Supreme Court’s recent immunity ruling.
The original four charges against Trump have not been dropped, but the revised indictment omits some of the initial accusations, such as those concerning attempts to use the Justice Department to support his false claims of election fraud.
Smith’s effort to revise his case follows the Supreme Court’s ruling from July that former presidents have broad immunity.