UPDATED 3:27 P.M.
FORT PIERCE, Florida (Reuters) -Donald Trump’s lawyer argued on Friday that the criminal case charging the former U.S. president with mishandling classified documents should be thrown out because the prosecutor is too independent — even as Trump complains that his legal woes are directed by Democratic President Joe Biden.
At a hearing in a federal court in Florida, Trump lawyer Emil Bove pressed U.S. Judge Aileen Cannon to dismiss the case because Special Counsel Jack Smith is not subject to the constraints that other federal prosecutors must face.
“Jack Smith does not have a superior who is operating with sufficient oversight authority over his decisions right now,” Bove said.
That argument has not succeeded in other cases involving special counsels, who have been appointed in Democratic and Republican-led administrations alike to ensure a degree of autonomy in politically sensitive cases.
But Cannon, a Trump appointee, has ruled in favor of the Republican presidential candidate on previous requests and has allowed a flurry of motions by his legal team to slow the case to a crawl. It is unlikely the case will reach a jury before Trump and Biden face voters in the Nov. 5 election.
Trump’s legal challenge is part of a multi-pronged attack on Smith, whom he has called “deranged” and a “thug” on social media. Smith, a veteran public corruption prosecutor who worked on war crimes cases in The Hague, was named by Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022 to lead the investigations into Trump.
Bove challenged the legal authority behind Smith’s appointment, arguing that Congress would have to approve a prosecutor with his level of autonomy.
Justice Department lawyer James Pearce told Cannon that Smith’s independence is not absolute, as Garland has the power to weigh in on important decisions and overrule him if necessary.
Cannon asked Pearce if Garland had approved Smith’s decision to bring criminal charges in the classified documents case.
Pearce declined to answer, saying the Justice Department needed to preserve the confidentiality of its internal decision-making.
In a rare move, Cannon has allowed three outside lawyers, including two siding with Trump, to argue during Friday’s hearing. Neither Trump nor Smith attended the heading.
Hearings in the case will continue on Monday and Tuesday.
FIRST APPEARANCE SINCE VERDICT
The hearings mark the first time Trump’s legal team has appeared in court since he was convicted on 34 felony counts in May of falsifying business records in New York.
Smith oversees the classified documents prosecution and a second criminal case in Washington accusing Trump of attempting to overturn his 2020 election defeat.
That case likewise has been delayed as the U.S. Supreme Court considers his claims of presidential immunity. It is expected to issue a ruling by the end of June, but did not do so on Friday.
Trump has pleaded not guilty in both of those cases and a separate election-interference case in Georgia.
He has frequently claimed that his four criminal cases stem from a coordinated effort by Biden’s Democrats to hobble his presidential bid.
As special counsel, Smith operates with a greater degree of independence than other federal prosecutors in an effort to minimize political influence.
Trump’s lawyers face an uphill battle as they challenge the special counsel appointment, as courts have previously rejected challenges to their authority, most recently in cases involving Biden’s son Hunter, who was found guilty this month on gun charges.
Trump has not raised the same challenge to Smith in the election case in Washington, where judges would be bound by prior rulings in prior challenges to special counsel.
The hearings will also address Trump’s bid to suppress evidence seized during an FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago resort and Smith’s request to bar Trump from making statements that may endanger law enforcement. That stems from Trump’s baseless claim that a standard FBI use-of-force policy filed ahead of a search of his Florida property was an authorization to assassinate him.
(Reporting by Andrew Goudsward; Writing by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone, Alistair Bell and Nick Zieminski)
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FORT PIERCE, Florida (Reuters) – Donald Trump continues his legal assault Friday on the criminal case accusing the former U.S. president of mishandling classified documents after leaving the White House, when his lawyers challenge the appointment of the prosecutor in the case.
Trump’s lawyers during three days of hearings are also expected to argue against imposing a gag order on the Republican presidential candidate over his baseless claim that a standard FBI use-of-force policy included in papers related to the search of his Florida property for the documents was an authorization for them to assassinate him.
Trump’s Republican allies in Congress have also voiced criticism of the appointment and funding of Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the classified documents prosecution and a second criminal case in Washington accusing Trump of attempting to overturn his 2020 election defeat.
The hearings before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, in Florida federal court will mark the first time his legal team has appeared in court since he was convicted on 34 felony counts in May of falsifying business records in New York.
Trump, who is challenging Democratic President Joe Biden in the Nov. 5 election, is also awaiting a landmark decision from the U.S. Supreme Court on his claims of presidential immunity in the election case.
Trump’s lawyers face an uphill battle in challenging Smith’s appointment. U.S. attorneys general serving presidents of both major political parties have appointed special counsels and courts have previously rejected challenges to their authority, most recently in cases involving Biden’s son Hunter, who was found guilty this month on gun charges.
“It has been upheld every time it has come up,” Kel McClanahan, a lawyer focused on national security issues, said of the special counsel authority. “It never works out” for the defense.
Trump has not raised the same challenge to Smith in the election case in Washington, where judges would be bound by prior rulings in prior challenges to special counsel.
TRUMP DENIES WRONGDOING
Trump faces ongoing criminal prosecutions including the documents case and two related to his attempts to overturn his 2020 defeat. He has pleaded not guilty in all three and has said without evidence that they are all attempts to stop him from returning to power.
Trump has argued in court filings in Florida that Smith did not have the authority to bring the charges because he was not confirmed by the Senate and his office was not created by an act of Congress. Trump’s defense is also challenging the mechanism funding the prosecution.
Smith’s office has disputed the claims and argued that his appointment is backed by prior court decisions.
Trump’s legal challenges are part of a multi-pronged attack on Smith, whom Trump has called “deranged” and a “thug” on social media. Smith, a veteran public corruption prosecutor who worked on war crimes cases in The Hague, was named by Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022 to lead the investigations into Trump.
His appointment was designed to give the probes a measure of independence from the Justice Department under the Biden administration.
Trump’s challenge to Smith is one of a series of attempts by his lawyers to dismiss the classified documents charges. Cannon has indefinitely delayed the trial’s start and it is unlikely the case will reach a jury before the November election.
The hearings will also address other issues including Trump’s bid to suppress evidence seized during an FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago resort and Smith’s request to bar Trump from making statements that may endanger law enforcement.
The request from Smith, which is scheduled to be discussed on Monday, came after Trump’s baseless claims that FBI agents were authorized to assassinate him when they searched his Mar-a-Lago, Florida resort in August 2022.
Garland, who rarely speaks publicly about the Trump cases, has called Trump’s claims “extremely dangerous.”
Cannon has been receptive to Trump’s defense on other issues and has signaled she may be open to Trump’s arguments challenging Smith’s appointment as special counsel.
In a rare move, she has allowed three outside lawyers representing legal experts and advocacy groups to argue during Friday’s hearing. Two of those lawyers have filed court briefs siding with Trump in the dispute.
(Reporting by Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Scott Malone and Alistair Bell)
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