Special counsel says holding Trump's classified docs trial before election would not violate DOJ policy [View all]

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: ABC News

March 1, 2024, 12:36 PM


An attorney with the special counsel Jack Smith's team told a judge Friday that holding former President Donald Trump's classified documents trial before the November election would not violate Justice Department policy.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon is hearing arguments today on moving the May 20 trial date in Trump's federal classified documents case during a court conference in Florida that the former president is attending in person. Special counsel Prosecutor Jay Bratt pushed for a July start, saying that holding a trial within 60 days of an election would not violate the Justice Department's typical aversion to bringing politically charged cases so close to an election.

Bratt told Judge Cannon a trial is permissible because the policy does not apply to already indicted matters. "We are in full compliance with the Justice Department manual," said Bratt."This case can be tried this summer," Bratt said, accusing the defense of "trying to wring out of the court" endless hearings that do not need to be held.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche argued that it would be "unfair" to put Trump on trial for mishandling classified documents before the election. "We very much continue to believe that a trial that takes place before the election is a mistake and should not happen," Blanche said during the scheduling conference in Fort Pierce, Florida.


Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/judges-determine-fate-2-trumps-criminal-trials-florida/story?id=107684124

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This obsession over the DOJ OLC memo, which is just a guidance document that seeks to minimize "politics", is NOT A LAW.

It basically says that prosecutors should avoid proceeding on their own, pretty much indicating that they would need a sign-off (most likely from the top of the Department, i.e., the AG) if they did still need to proceed.