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Special counsel Jack Smith told a federal judge Thursday there was no reason to postpone the trial date in the case of the classified documents against Donald Trump, in a court filing that strongly rejected the reasons the former president and his co-defendant gave. for the trial to be delayed, according to CNN.
Smith’s team, which is seeking a trial date of mid-December, said the defendants gave a “misleading” picture of the amount of evidence prosecutors have turned over to them in the case of the White House documents that were seized. in Mar-a-Lago.
Trump and his co-defendant, Walt Nauta, cited the need for more time to review the evidence as a reason to delay setting a trial date.
Prosecutors also criticized the suggestion by lawyers for Trump and Nauta that it would not be possible to sit a jury just before the 2024 electionsbecause Trump is running to return to the presidency.
In an 11-page filing signed by Assistant Special Counsel David Harbach, prosecutors said federal law and the Constitution require the trial to take place as soon as possible, not with an ?open? built around Trump’s political calendar, according to Politico.
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Trump faces more than 30 criminal charges related to his alleged willful withholding of classified national defense information.
The former president and his aide Walt Nauta also face charges stemming from alleged attempts to conceal the materials and obstruct the investigation of the documents. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty.
Special Counsel Smith’s new filing occurred before a hearing of the case is held next Tuesday, the first before federal district judge Aileen Cannonwho will preside over the trial, where lawyers for each side will discuss how the classified materials in the case should be handled.
Thursday’s presentation by the special counsel also sheds new light on how prosecutors plan to protect confidential government information included in the casewhile still meeting the discovery obligations of the process.
Photo: EFE
Smith said that ?a large majority? Some of the classified records investigators obtained from Trump’s Florida resort will be accessible to defense counsel once they obtain provisional security clearances.
Prosecutors were prepared to turn over that set of records on July 10, if the attorneys had obtained their provisional clearances by then, according to the new filing.
“However, to receive a provisional authorization, the attorney was first required to submit their Form SF-86 and supporting documentation to the Litigation Security Group,” the filing says. ?As of this filing, only two registered attorneys have completed this task. The Court has set today as the deadline for them to do so.
Trump’s lawyers told Cannon in a presentation Thursday night that by next Monday they will have taken steps to request security clearances for the case.
Keep reading:
– Special counsel sets new trial date against Trump in case of classified documents
– Trump accuses prosecutor Smith, the DOJ and the FBI of leaking audio where he talks about the classified documents
– Trump receives the first batch of evidence against him in the case of classified documents found in Mar-a-Lago