FORT PIERCE, Fla. – Prosecutors and defense attorneys in the case involving former President Donald Trump and classified documents are set to appear in court on Wednesday for the first time since the trial was postponed by the judge earlier this month. The trial, one of four criminal prosecutions against Trump, was originally scheduled for May 20, but U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon decided to delay it indefinitely due to unresolved issues.
During the upcoming court session, arguments will be heard regarding Trump’s request to dismiss the indictment on the grounds that it lacks clarity in defining a crime and is perceived as a personal and political attack on him. Special counsel Jack Smith’s team, representing the prosecutors, will oppose this request. Trump, a Republican, is not expected to be present in court for the hearing.
Trump’s legal team has filed multiple motions seeking to dismiss the case, with some already being denied. Another aspect to be addressed in court is the request by Trump’s co-defendant, his valet Walt Nauta, to dismiss the charges against him.
A recent motion revealed that defense attorneys are seeking to exclude evidence from boxes of records seized by FBI agents during a search at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach nearly two years ago. The defense argues that the search in August 2022 was unconstitutional and tainted by misrepresentations in the FBI affidavit.
In response, Smith’s team has rejected these accusations, defending the investigative approach as thorough and justified. They highlighted that the search warrant was based on probable cause and provided the necessary guidance to FBI agents conducting the search. The prosecutors emphasized that Trump’s arguments lack a valid basis to suppress the evidence obtained from the search.
Additionally, documents from the investigation, including a previously sealed opinion from the former chief judge of the federal court in Washington, were made public. The opinion stated that Trump’s lawyers had turned over four documents with classification markings found in Trump’s bedroom months after the FBI search at Mar-a-Lago.
Despite these developments, Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee for 2024, has maintained his plea of not guilty and denied any wrongdoing. The outcome of the upcoming court proceedings remains uncertain as both sides continue to present their arguments.