The ruling is the latest in a saga driven by President Trump’s desire for redemption in the state, which he lost in 2020. The county is likely to appeal.
At a private event in Washington last month, Mr. Smith, the former special counsel, accused Justice Department leaders of targeting people for prosecution to please and impress the president.
After Trump used the terms “miniwar” and “excursion” to describe the conflict in Iran, Jimmy Kimmel predicted that the president would next call the war “a tiff. It will be a $200 billion tiff.”