Judge Rules On Motions In Trump Doc Case
Former President Donald Trump's classified documents case took a dramatic turn on Monday as the judge overseeing his trial rebuked federal prosecutors and struck down two of their filings.
According to District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who is handling the case, prosecutors must provide an explanation for “the legal propriety of using an out-of-district grand jury proceeding to continue to investigate and/or to seek post-indictment hearings on matters pertinent to the instant indicted matter in this district.”
Trump and his co-defendant, Walt Nauta, are facing charges related to the misuse of classified information and obstruction of justice. In June, a federal grand jury in Miami indicted the former president, while a separate grand jury in Washington, DC, last week upped the charges to include four counts related to an effort to overturn the 2020 election.
In a filing last week, prosecutors argued that Nauta's lawyer, Stanley Woodward, may have a potential conflict of interest due to his representation of witnesses who could be called upon to testify at the trial. This could put him in “the position of cross-examining past or current clients,” the filing stated.
Reacting to the motion, Judge Cannon declared that Nauta’s lawyers must respond to the hearing request and address the grand jury issue by August 17. The prosecution, meanwhile, is due to file its response by August 22.
The judge’s decision to rebuke the federal prosecutors marks a rare step by a court in striking down documents. It also highlights the increasing scrutiny on the proceedings in the Trump classified documents case, a process that also includes a potential conflict of interest from the very lawyer defending the former president.
The case remains ongoing, and it will be interesting to see how Judge Cannon’s ruling will affect its outcome. It is now up to Nauta’s lawyers to respond to the motion and shed more light on the existence of the grand jury. No matter what, one thing is certain: the former president's legal woes are far from over.