In a significant legal development, the Colorado judge overseeing the pioneering lawsuit aimed at preventing former President Donald Trump from appearing on the state’s 2024 presidential ballot has issued a protective order. This order specifically prohibits threats and intimidation in the case, acknowledging the need to ensure the safety of all parties involved, including herself and her staff, as this groundbreaking litigation progresses.
District Judge Sarah B. Wallace expressed her full understanding of the concerns surrounding the safety of the parties, legal representatives, and her own staff, particularly in light of the heated environment surrounding this case, as she consented to the protective order.
The protective order explicitly forbids any parties involved in the case from making threatening or intimidating statements. Scott Gessler, a former Colorado secretary of state representing Donald Trump in this matter, voiced opposition to the order. He argued that such an order was unnecessary, citing existing laws that already prohibit threats and intimidation.
This protective order was requested by legal representatives of the liberal advocacy group Citizens For Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The group is pursuing legal action to disqualify Donald Trump from the ballot under a rarely invoked provision of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which dates back to the Civil War era.
Gessler pointed out that some of the intense rhetoric in this case has originated from the political left, emphasizing the robust political debate surrounding the matter.
Across the United States, numerous lawsuits have been filed seeking to disqualify Donald Trump from the 2024 presidential ballot, citing the 14th Amendment’s clause that disallows individuals who have sworn an oath to the Constitution and subsequently “engaged in insurrection” against it from running for office. These cases primarily revolve around Trump’s alleged involvement in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, which aimed to halt the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.
Notably, the Colorado case is the first of its kind initiated by a group with substantial legal resources. It is widely expected that this matter will eventually reach the U.S. Supreme Court, which has never previously ruled on the insurrection provision contained in Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
Judge Wallace has scheduled a hearing for October 30 to discuss whether Donald Trump should be disqualified under Colorado law, which prohibits candidates who fail to meet the eligibility requirements for higher office from appearing on the state’s ballots. She intends to provide ample time for the Colorado Supreme Court, and possibly the U.S. Supreme Court, to review the decision ahead of the state’s January 5 deadline for establishing its 2024 presidential primary ballot.
A parallel case in Minnesota, filed by another well-funded liberal group, is set to be heard by that state’s supreme court on November 2.
Trump’s legal team is expected to file two motions seeking the dismissal of the lawsuit later on the same Friday. One of these motions will argue that the litigation represents an attempt to infringe on Trump’s freedom of speech rights. Judge Wallace has scheduled a hearing for October 13 to deliberate on this claim.
During the court proceedings, attorney Sean Grimsley, representing the plaintiffs, proposed the protective order, citing federal prosecutor Jack Smith’s recent request for a gag order against Trump due to threats made in connection with Smith’s prosecution of the former president regarding his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
Grimsley remarked, “At least one of the parties has a tendency to tweet – or Truth Social,” referring to Trump’s own social media platform where he communicates most of his statements, “about witnesses and the courts.”
By AP
