It was the perfect strategy — Democratic prosecutors would hit former President Donald Trump with so many indictments and lawsuits that, rather than campaigning, he would spend the entire election season defending himself inside a courtroom. Surely at least one of the charges would result in a conviction before Election Day. And President Joe Biden would cruise to victory.

But, as they say, the devil fools with the best-laid plans. District attorneys and prosecutors have love affairs and even perjure themselves, trials get delayed, and there are still a few judges left who believe that no one should be “deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law” — not even a defendant as reviled as Trump.