The Article III Project has filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to grant certiorari in Carroll v. Trump, arguing that the Second Circuit’s decision runs roughshod over the Federal Rules of Evidence and reflects results-oriented reasoning calculated to permit the admission of evidence against President Trump.
The amicus explains that the Second Circuit justified deeply troubled district court rulings by ignoring its own precedent and mischaracterizing the evidence before it. En banc review was denied over a spirited dissent from Judge Menashi, leaving in place a split decision that jeopardizes the constitutional validity of Federal Rules of Evidence 413, 414, and 415.
The district court’s evidentiary rulings were outlandish. The court admitted the Access Hollywood tape on the theory that it constituted a “confession” to the alleged conduct—when it was no such thing—and concluded there was no risk of unfair prejudice from that ruling. The risk of prejudice was palpable.
To reach this result, the Second Circuit departed from its own precedent regarding Rules 403 and 404, created a fictional description of the Access Hollywood tape, and expanded Rule 404(b) to the breaking point. In doing so, it removed a key constitutional check on Rules 413–415, allowing the admission of bad-acts evidence with no check on their prejudicial effect.
These errors undermine the fundamental constitutional fairness of the trial. The brief urges the Supreme Court to grant certiorari to correct the Second Circuit’s errors. No defendant, let alone the President of the United States, should be subject to such a deeply flawed trial result.
This amicus brief was filed by First & Fourteenth partner Michael Francisco and associate James Compton.
Read Amicus Brief Here: Brief of Amicus Curiae Article III Project In Support of Petition For Writ of Certiorari