(You are missing some minor details between here and the rest of your post. Allow me to fill in.)
Actually, if he succeeds, he gets to retire to some small European enclave where he will never be seen or heard from again. His career will be over. But he gets to keep the money he got from blackmailing people he was supposed to be prosecuting.
If he loses, well, I don't think I have to spell out what the outcome will be.
He was given the option of taking on this case, after being advised that it was a losing proposition and that whoever took on the job was going to lose their career and possibly be imprisoned. They had no case, no evidence, and whomever took on the job would have to lie, cheat, steal, misinterpret the law, whatever it took to keep Trump from being President again. Since they already had Jack on stealing, lying, abuse of power (blackmail) they assumed he would have no problem accepting the deal.
He was then 'turned over' to Garland.
This is why you see Smith doing things that no attorney would try or be allowed to get away with. All he has to do is keep Trump tied up and ridiculed/scorned so that Trump doesn't win the election, and Jack lives.
Seems to be the dominant opinion on this thread.
Pretty wild, but he does appear to be a thug. Guess McDonnell just wouldn’t pay the vig.
We’ll see if Jordan is willing to go there. He demanded rationale on these cases from Smith back in November with a December 15 deadline and haven’t heard if he met that or gave them the finger.