WASHINGTON — The US Supreme Court found on July 1 that Donald Trump cannot be prosecuted for official actions taken as president, but can for private acts, in a landmark ruling recognising for the first time any form of presidential immunity from prosecution.

The justices, in a 6-3 ruling written by Chief Justice John Roberts, threw out a lower court's decision rejecting Trump's claim of immunity from criminal charges involving his efforts to undo his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden. The six conservative justices were in the majority. Its three liberals dissented.

Trump is the Republican candidate challenging Biden, a Democrat, in the Nov 5 US election in a 2020 rematch. The Supreme Court's slow handling of the case and its decision to return key questions about the scope of Trump's immunity to the trial judge to resolve make it improbable he will be tried before the election on these charges brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith.

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