The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Tuesday rejected Donald Trump’s bid to escape charges that he illegally plotted to overturn the 2020 election results, saying that granting immunity for the former president’s actions would “collapse our system of separated powers.”

“Former President Trump’s alleged efforts to remain in power despite losing the 2020 election were, if proven, an unprecedented assault on the structure of our government,” the three-judge panel wrote in a 57-page per curiam opinion. “He allegedly injected himself into a process in which the President has no role—the counting and certifying of the Electoral College votes—thereby undermining constitutionally established procedures and the will of the Congress.