FORMER PRESIDENT Donald Trump at his civil fraud trial (Shutterstock).

Can a former president have immunity from prosecution for crimes committed while in office?  Special counsel Jack Smith on Monday asked  the U.S. Supreme Court to quickly issue a ruling on the question.

Lower courts have ruled against the immunity theory regarding whether Donald Trump conspired to overturn results of the 2020 presidential election, won by Joe Biden.

Smith’s haste to have the issue decided stems from wishing to avoid delays that would push his trial for insurrection deep into the 2024 presidential campaign.

Woman seeking abortion will leave state

Lawyers for a pregnant woman seeking to get an abortion said Monday she has decided to leave Texas to go to another state where termination of her pregnancy would be legal.

The fetus that Kate Cox is carrying has a fatal condition and continuing the pregnancy would pose a danger both to her health and her ability to bear other children, they said.

After earlier granting approval, a lower state court found its ruling paused by the state supreme court, which has not set a date to consider the case.

Sports: $2 million for Shohei?

News over the weekend that Shohei Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers for $700 million for 10 years came as a big of a surprise. Perhaps more  surprising are the terms reported Monday that he would receive just $2 million per year, deferring $68 million each year and receiving the balance at the end of his contract from 2034 to 2043.

The purpose would be to allow the Dodgers to avoid paying a crushing luxury tax.

Weather: Partly cloudy times five

In our West Orange County area, the skies will be partly cloudy for the next five days. The forecast calls for a daytime high of 68 with an overnight low of 49. After that, things warm up a bit with a high of 72 (45) on Wednesday, 76 (50) on Thursday and 78 (53) on Friday.