Jack Smith, prosecutor 'If I could be cowed...I would find another line of work'

A grand jury indicted Donald Trump on 1 August on charges of trying to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The 45-page indictment against Trump - which includes one count of conspiracy to defraud the US, one count of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights - was filed by special counsel Jack Smith in federal district court in Washington DC.

- Maya Yang

Smith, appointed as special counsel by the attorney general, Merrick Garland, in November 2022, has brought two indictments against Trump, the first surrounding Trump's alleged mishandling of classified documents that were discovered at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

After his appointment by Garland last November, Smith vowed to carry out the criminal investigations as thoroughly as possible. "I intend to conduct the assigned investigations, and any prosecutions that may result from them, independently and in the best traditions of the Department of Justice," Smith said. "The pace of the investigations will not pause or flag under my watch. I will exercise independent judgment and will move the investigations forward expeditiously and thoroughly to whatever outcome the facts and the law dictate."