Final answer:
The lower court verdict in US v. Nixon resulted in the unanimous Supreme Court ruling that required President Nixon to release the White House tapes, which led to his resignation before impeachment proceedings could take place.
Step-by-step explanation:
Lower Court Verdict of US v. Nixon
The lower court verdict in the case of United States v. Richard M. Nixon is a crucial element in the sequence of events that led to the Watergate scandal's outcome. It all began when Nixon refused to hand over the White House tapes, and cited executive privilege. This claim was challenged and eventually led to a series of legal battles. Importantly, Nixon tried to stay ahead by turning over some tapes that he thought would establish his innocence, however, evidence of tampering was found. This increased pressure to release all tapes eventually brought the matter to the Supreme Court.
After the investigations and trials, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that President Nixon had to release the tape recordings to government investigators. The tapes revealed Nixon's attempts to cover up the Watergate break-in using the CIA, which eventually led to his impeachment proceedings. However, Nixon resigned from his office on August 8, 1974, thus preempting the impeachment process.
It is worth noting that Nixon's public approval plummeted during this process, and the released tapes shocked not only in their evidence of involvement in Watergate but also in revealing secret operations in Cambodia and numerous other illegal activities.