Trump Attorneys: Gag Order's Pause Should Remain in Effect in D.C. – The Messenger
A partial gag order in the federal election-subversion case against Donald Trump should not be reinstated, attorneys for the former president argued in a new court filing Saturday.
"President Trump has a right to speak his mind and the public has a right to hear what he has to say," said the Trump lawyers' brief, signed by counsel John Lauro. "The prosecution and the Court may not like the content of these statements, but President Trump has an inarguable and inalienable right to make them."
The 25-page filing by Trump's attorneys comes in response to a recent brief from Special Counsel Jack Smith's office on Wednesday that called out the former president's recent social media posts and argued that the gag order should return with additional measures to strengthen it.
At issue is U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan's three-page gag order issued Oct. 17, which prohibited not just Trump but all parties to the case from making statements that target prosecutors or their staff, defense lawyers or their staff, court staff and supporting personnel, and "any reasonably foreseeable witnesses or the substance of their testimony."
Trump filed a notice of appeal that same day to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which has yet to schedule briefings or any kind of arguments tied to his request.
In a 33-page motion last Friday, the former president's attorneys followed up on their appeal by asking Chutkan to put the gag order on hold "pending the outcome of all appellate proceedings." They argued that the latest restraints on Trump's speech have no merit and violate his First Amendment rights.
Chutkan responded within a couple of hours on Friday and administratively lifted the order. She did not fully grant Trump's request for the long-term stay during the appellate proceedings but did allow time for briefings and to consider the motion.
Smith's response filing on Wednesday asked Chutkan to not only reinstate the partial gag order, but to modify Trump's pre-trial release conditions "by making compliance with the order a condition or by clarifying that the existing condition barring communication with witnesses about the facts of the case includes indirect messages to witnesses made publicly on social media or in speeches."
Without the court's intervention, prosecutors argued, Trump "will continue to threaten the integrity of these proceedings and put trial participants at risk."
Chutkan is expected to rule on whether or not to reinstate the gag order now that both sides have made arguments in court filings, but there is no set timeline for her to issue a ruling.
The former president has pleaded not guilty to all charges in the Washington, D.C. case, which centers around felony allegations he tried to overturn the 2020 election he lost. The former president is scheduled to go on trial beginning March 4, 2024.