Per ABC News, an attorney with the special counsel Jack Smith's team told a judge Friday that holding former President Donald Trump's classified documents trial before the November election would not violate Justice Department policy.
WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 16: Former U.S. President and current GOP Presidential candidate Donald Trump addresses the press at Mar-a-Lago on February 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Florida. Trump spoke about a New York judge who ordered him to pay $355 million and barred him from running New York businesses for fraudulently inflating net worth.
In a Florida court conference attended by the former president, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon is currently considering arguments about rescheduling the May 20 trial date in Trump's federal classified documents case.
Special Counsel Prosecutor Jay Bratt urges a July start date, emphasizing that holding a trial within 60 days of an election would not violate the Justice Department's policy of bringing politically charged cases so close to an election.
Trump's attorney, Todd Blanche, argued that it would be "unfair" to put Trump on trial for mishandling classified documents before the election.
"We very much continue to believe that a trial that takes place before the election is a mistake and should not happen," Blanche said during the scheduling conference in Fort Pierce, Florida.
What Has The Judge Said Thus Far?
Judge Cannon broke for lunch offering little information on how she might rule other than noting the 20 pre-trial motions she still needs to decide, reported ABC.
"A lot of work needs to be done," she said.
Based on Trump's claim of presidential immunity, his legal team contends that the case should be dropped entirely. The Supreme Court has signaled its intention to review this claim in Trump's federal election interference proceedings.
In an article published by BBC, some legal experts have accused Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, of slow-walking the pre-trial process, including by postponing key deadlines.
She hinted at a delay in the original schedule back in November, referencing a complaint from the Trump team about the time required to review what she referred to as the "exceptionally large amount of unclassified and classified discovery" in the case.
BBC revealed that the material includes 1.3 million pages of unclassified documents, 5,500 pages of classified documents, and 60 terabytes of closed-circuit television footage.
On Wednesday, she rejected Mr. Trump's request to see more of the classified government filings than it already has access to.
The judge's call to reschedule the trial date will be instrumental in defining the timeframe for Mr. Trump's upcoming court proceedings.
