FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) — The federal judge presiding over the case involving classified documents and Donald Trump is considering arguments on whether to restrict the former president from making public comments that could jeopardize the safety of FBI agents working on the case.
Special counsel Jack Smith’s team argues that the restrictions are necessary due to Trump’s unfounded statements suggesting that the FBI agents conducting the search at his Mar-a-Lago estate in August 2022 were planning to harm him and his family. Trump’s legal team argues that any gag order would unfairly silence Trump during a critical time in a presidential campaign where he is the likely Republican nominee.
It is uncertain when U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, appointed by Trump and scrutinized for her handling of the case, will make a decision. Prior to addressing the limited gag order requested by prosecutors, she will hear further arguments related to Smith’s appointment and funding by the Justice Department on Monday morning.
These arguments are part of a three-day hearing that started on Friday to address numerous legal issues that have stalled the trial, originally scheduled for last month. The trial has been indefinitely postponed, and it is unlikely to take place before the November presidential election.
Trump is facing multiple felony charges related to the illegal possession of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and impeding the FBI’s retrieval efforts. Despite the substantial evidence presented by prosecutors, many legal experts view this case as the most clear-cut among the four prosecutions against Trump, who has pleaded not guilty. However, Cannon has been slow to rule on various motions and has entertained defense requests that prosecutors argue are baseless.
Smith’s team raised objections after Trump alleged that the FBI was ready to harm him during the search at Mar-a-Lago on August 8, 2022. Trump referenced standard FBI policy that prohibits the use of deadly force unless there is a credible threat of imminent danger of death or serious injury to the officer conducting the search or another individual.
In a fundraising email, Trump falsely claimed that the FBI was prepared to “take him out” and endanger his family.
Prosecutors argue that such statements pose a foreseeable risk to law enforcement, pointing to incidents like an attack on an FBI office in Ohio following the Mar-a-Lago search and the arrest of a Trump supporter who threatened an FBI agent investigating President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter.
In a court filing on Friday, prosecutors wrote, “Using knowingly false and incendiary language in the volatile environment created by Trump poses a direct threat to law enforcement that must be addressed to prevent further violence.”
Trump’s lawyers argue that there is no evidence that his comments have directly endangered any FBI official involved in the Mar-a-Lago search.
“Essentially, the motion is based on the fact that President Trump criticized the search at Mar-a-Lago based on publicly available information from this case, as part of his constitutionally protected campaign speech, in a manner that government officials disapprove of,” they stated.
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