The Supreme Court case concerns the legal ramifications when an appellate court or the jury itself determines that the charge was not properly brought in that district. Venue is an issue that can be submitted to a criminal trial jury, to decide whether the particular count the jury is considering is properly brought in the district.
The case at issue, argued before the Justices only a few weeks ago, concerns what happens when the government gets its venue decision wrong. Indeed, a little-noted pending Supreme Court case may well be something that is complicating the calculus for Smith, leading to a particularly cautious approach on his part. What if Special Counsel Jack Smith charges Trump in Washington DC, wins a criminal conviction from a jury finding the former president guilty of all charges, but also finding that the conduct occurred outside of DC and thus should never have heard the case? Can Smith try again in Florida? The Constitution requires each criminal charge be brought in the location where the criminal conduct at issue occurred, but often that is in multiple jurisdictions, leaving the government free to choose from a variety of locations after considering a variety of factors. Much has been written in the last 24 hours about where charges against former President Donald Trump would be brought with respect to his handling of government documents and obstructing the investigation into that conduct.
