U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, overseeing former President Donald Trump's criminal trial regarding the handling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, harshly criticized special counsel Jack Smith's inconsistent positions on the need to seal evidence in the case.
In a five-page order released Sunday, Cannon, who was appointed by Trump, wrote she was disappointed that Smith asked her to keep information from the public to protect grand jury secrecy and witness safety. She contended that Smith ignored similar concerns at other times during the case.
Trump is facing 40 felony counts regarding the handling of documents, some deemed classified, after leaving office. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has vehemently denied wrongdoing. His co-defendants, Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, were also listed on Sunday's order.
"In two separate filings related to sealing, the special counsel stated, without qualification, that he had no objection to full unsealing of previously sealed docket entries related to allegations of prosecutorial misconduct," Cannon wrote. "In light of that repeated representation, and in the absence of any defense objection, the court unsealed those materials consistent with the general presumption in favor of public access."
The materials that were unsealed, though, contain information such as grand jury details that the special counsel has and continues to say, in all other filings, should be kept sealed. But Cannon wrote the special counsel took a position that it wanted the material unsealed to "publicly and transparently refute defense allegations of prosecutorial misconduct." She also wrote that the superseding indictment issued in August contained "numerous quotes from grand jury testimony, the balance of which the Special Counsel continues to maintain require sealing under Rule 6(e)."
Rule 6(e) is the federal statute regarding the recording and disclosing of grand jury proceedings.
"Fair enough," Cannon wrote. "But nowhere in that explanation is there any basis to conclude that the Special Counsel could not have defended the integrity of his Office while simultaneously preserving the witness-safety and Rule6(e) concerns he has repeatedly told the Court, and maintains to this day, are of serious consequence, and which the Court has endeavored with diligence to accommodate in its multiple Orders on sealing/redaction.
"The Court is disappointed in these developments. The sealing and redaction rules should be applied consistently and fairly upon a sufficient factual and legal showing. And parties should not make requests that undermine any prior representations or positions except upon full disclosure to the Court and appropriate briefing."
Cannon also denied proposed redactions by Trump's legal team but granted them a merits hearing on the redactions in another motion.
The trial was scheduled to start Monday, but it was indefinitely suspended by Cannon earlier this month while other legal disputes are settled. Smith also has indicted Trump on four criminal charges in Washington, D.C., regarding alleged attempts to interfere with the 2020 election results. The start of that trial also has been delayed as Trump's defense of presidential immunity is being considered by the Supreme Court.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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