constitutional-law common-law precedent
Can a sitting president of the United States be indicted by one of the states?
<p>Some lawyers say a sitting president cannot be indicted, other lawyers disagree. Apart from that, does what they are saying apply to both federal and state indictments? I mean could the president be indicted by the state of New York, say?</p>

<p>Note the following argument:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>the landmark 1819 case of McCulloch v. Maryland, which ruled that state officials cannot obstruct “the measures of a government [the federal government] created by others as well as themselves.” “In other words,” Kalt and Amar summarize, “a single state cannot use its power to derail the functioning of the United States.”</p>
</blockquote>

<p>(Amar is a Yale constitutional law professor, Kalt, his student)</p>

<p>On the other hand, you have the argument by a Hofstra constitutional law professor that the 25th amendment can be applied when the President is occupied with a criminal case, ergo, the functioning of the United States can be carried on unimpared.  </p>

<p>At the end-of-the-day there is no absolute answer as it is still being argued academically and has never been specifically settled by the courts.  </p>
