Courtesy: Evan El-Amin- Shutterstock- WILKES-BARRE, PA – AUGUST 2, 2018: President Donald Trump with a serious look as he delivers a speech at a campaign rally held at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
The criminal trial of the former president Donald Trump, who is accused of stealing confidential White House records, is probably going to be delayed past May, which would further disrupt his already uncertain legal schedule as he prepares to run for office again.
US District Judge Aileen Cannon said during a hearing on Friday in Florida that the trial’s scheduled start date of May 20 will be rescheduled, but she did not provide a new date. Trump, the front-runner for the Republican nomination in November, was present at the hearing while many of his fans protested outside by waving flags and denouncing the actions.
Special Counsel Jack Smith filed the lawsuit, alleging that Trump purposefully withheld materials related to national defense, hid documents, and obstructed justice by avoiding government efforts to retrieve the records.
As he campaigns in the midst of four criminal prosecutions and two appeals in civil lawsuits that he recently lost at trial, Trump’s legal calendar has grown more and more demanding. While Trump waits for a US Supreme Court hearing to determine whether presidential immunity shields him from accusations related to his attempt to rig the 2020 election, the federal criminal prosecution related to that attempt is also on hold. Trial dates have not yet been scheduled in a related state case in Georgia.
Trump’s first criminal trial began on March 25 in New York, where the Manhattan district attorney accused him of fabricating financial records to hide payments of hush money to a porn star prior to the 2016 election. This was one of the reasons given by Cannon for a potential postponement. According to Cannon, Trump and his legal team might not be able to finish everything before the classified materials lawsuit because of the New York case.
Prosecutors and Trump’s attorneys argued throughout the hearing about whether the Justice Department would break its own guidelines by trying the former president in the final weeks before November’s election.
Smith’s team contended that the DOJ’s guideline prohibiting taking any public steps that could affect the outcome of an election immediately before the vote wouldn’t be broken by trying Trump before the election.
Lead prosecutor Jay Bratt, who is in charge of the case involving the confidential materials, stated that it does not apply to cases that have already been prosecuted.
Todd Blanche, the lead attorney for Trump, retaliated, claiming that a trial scheduled so close to the election would amount to “complete election interference” and be against departmental policy.
Although it isn’t stated in the agency handbook, Justice Department officials have interpreted the directive to mean 60 days prior to the election.
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Chris began his writing as a hobby while attending Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. Today he and his wife live in the Orlando area with their three children and dog.
