The U.S. Secret Service is in the business of protecting the president, whether he’s inside the Oval Office or visiting a foreign war zone.
But protecting a former president in prison? The prospect is unprecedented. That would be the challenge if Donald J. Trump — whom the agency is required by law to protect around the clock — is convicted at his criminal trial in Manhattan and sentenced to serve time.
Even before the trial’s opening statements, the Secret Service was in some measure planning for the extraordinary possibility of a former president behind bars. Prosecutors had asked the judge in the case to remind Mr. Trump that attacks on witnesses and jurors could land him in jail even before a verdict is rendered.
Why is it normal? And how do we fix it?
There’s lots of reasons. One is that prosecutors have one shot at it–they don’t get to appeal a not-guilty verdict in most circumstances–so they need to build their case very, very carefully. This is arguably a good thing, so maybe we shouldn’t fix it.
One thing we very much should fix, though, is that the size of the federal bench hasn’t been increased in a while, and judges have an overwhelming workload. Doubling or even quadrupling the number of judges would be in order. This will get labeled as “stuffing the bench” by whichever party isn’t currently in power, but it’s a good idea.
The justice system is just slow, though. Consider that depending on the outcome, it can take away everything you own, throw you in jail for years, or in some jurisdictions, end your life. There are reasons for those outcomes (well, except for the death penalty), and that means the process should be very deliberate. This isn’t just about Trump.