Trump's lawyers call for dismissal of classified documents case, citing presidential immunity – Firstpost
In federal court in Florida, Trump is charged with dozens of felony counts on the grounds that he unlawfully had sensitive papers at his Mar-a-Lago resort and hindered the government’s attempts to obtain them. The trial in this case is scheduled for May 20, although it may be postponed
In an effort to have the criminal case against him for unlawfully keeping classified documents dismissed, the legal team of former President Donald Trump filed a number of motions on Thursday night. They argued, among other things, that presidential immunity shields him from prosecution, a point they have already made in their appeal to the US Supreme Court regarding election meddling.
Lawyers Christopher Kise and Todd Blanche wrote that the charges “turn on his alleged decision to designate records as personal under the Presidential Records Act (PRA) and to cause the records to be moved from the White House to Mar-a-Lago.” Since Trump made this decision while he was still in office, they wrote, it “was an official act, and as such is subject to presidential immunity.”
In federal court in Florida, Trump is charged with dozens of felony counts on the grounds that he unlawfully had sensitive papers at his Mar-a-Lago resort and hindered the government’s attempts to obtain them. The trial in this case is scheduled for May 20, although it may be postponed.
Additionally, Trump’s legal team said that the appointment of special counsel Jack Smith by Attorney General Merrick Garland to probe the previous president was “illegal” and that the materials lawsuit should be dropped.
In August, Smith’s second case against Trump was made public when the former president was charged with a felony in Washington for his efforts to rig the 2020 election results prior to his followers’ violent protest at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The case had been set for trial on March 4 in federal court in Washington. But that date was canceled amid an appeal by Trump on the legally untested question of whether a former president is immune from prosecution for official acts taken in the White House. Trump’s lawyers have asked the Supreme Court to intervene, but it’s not clear if the justices will.
A June 2023 indictment charging Trump with dozens of felony counts alleges that investigators found boxes of sensitive documents recklessly stored at Mar-a-Lago in spaces including a ballroom, a bathroom and shower, his bedroom and a storage room. Prosecutors have said the documents he stowed, refused to return and in some cases showed to visitors risked jeopardizing not only relations with foreign nations but also the safety of troops and confidential sources.
Trump faces four criminal indictments in four different cities as he vies to reclaim the White House. The cases total 91 felony counts.
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