'Would bet my house': Experts reveal why Judge Chutkan is unlikely to recuse herself from Trump case

12 September 2023

Legal experts are saying if United States District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan does not recuse herself from ex-President Donald Trump's January 6 case, he "probably should not expect any appellate court to second-guess that decision," according to a Tuesday, September 12 exclusive report from The Messenger.

The former president's attorneys recently filed a motion asking Chutkan to remove herself from presiding over the trial for the 2024 MAGA hopeful's four criminal charges related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Per The Messenger, the United States Department of Justice "has until Thursday to respond to Trump's recusal motion, a brisk time frame interpreted by some legal experts as a sign that Chutkan isn’t worried about the challenge."

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The news outlet reports:

Experts reached by The Messenger, including one of Trump's former White House lawyers, said they believed the former president has slim chances on appeal if Chutkan isn't moved by that entreaty.

Trump's former attorney Ty Cobb noted that the law of recusal has 'three essential legs': 'financial interest, relationship interest and personal bias.'

'The personal bias leg has a big exception which is 'information learned while performing one's judicial functions like trials and sentencings,' Cobb noted. 'The only issue really is whether despite having learned of such information a judge can act fairly and ensure a fair trial.'

According to the report, "The success or failure of Trump's motion will largely depend on the interpretation of Judge Chutkan's remarks during the sentencing proceedings in other Jan. 6 cases," such as in October last year, she "criticized ex-Ohio school employee Christine Priola for her 'blind loyalty' to 'one person who, by the way, remains free to this day,' referring clearly to Trump. Chutkan never explicitly said that Trump should be charged, prosecuted, or incarcerated for any crime during her remarks in Priola’s sentencing, but to Trump and his lawyers, she clearly implied it."

However, ex-federal prosecutor and podcast host Renato Mariotti told The Messenger, "I certainly don't think the D.C. Circuit, but I don't think the United States Supreme Court is going to remove a trial judge based on the comment she made on the sentencing or somebody else. I would bet my house on that."

The Messenger's full report is available at this link.

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