Donald Trump seeks to stop the review of the documents found in Mar-a-Lago

First modification: 08/23/2022 – 03:21

Former President Donald Trump filed a motion on Monday before a federal court in Florida with which he seeks to temporarily block the review of the documents that were seized by the FBI at his home in Mar-a-Lago, while an expert witness is appointed to would oversee the review.

The document, presented in West Palm Beach, and which corresponded to District Judge Aileen M. Cannon, whom Trump appointed to the position, demands that the United States Department of Justice provide a detailed list of the elements seized in the past August 8 and asks investigators to return any objects that were not covered by the search warrant.

Trump’s lawyers say that “politics cannot be allowed to affect the administration of justice” and that “law enforcement is a shield that protects Americans. It cannot be used as a weapon for political ends.”

The trial judge who approved the search warrant, Bruce Reinhart, is still weighing whether to require the Justice Department to release a copy setting out evidence as to why there was probable cause to search the former president’s home.

The Justice Department, in a public hearing held last week, opposed disclosing these details, arguing that they would provide a “road map” of the ongoing investigation and could chill witness cooperation. Furthermore, they warned the judge that the necessary redactions in the affidavit would be so numerous as to strip the document of any substantive information and render it effectively meaningless to the public.

Before noon on Thursday, August 25, the Justice Department must provide a copy of the document, which may be made public.

What the research at Mar-a-Lago is looking for

The FBI on August 8 arrived with a warrant at the Mar-a-Lago condominium, where former President Donald Trump owns property. The investigators searched the house in search of documents classified as “top secret” that the former president would have taken from the White House after finishing his presidential term.

Trump’s lawyers say the federal agency recovered 11 sets of classified documents in an “outrageously aggressive move” and say the action was carried out despite Trump having been “fully cooperative.”

In a statement, Trump claimed that “ALL documents have been declassified” and described the records as “illegally seized” from his home.

In response to these claims, the Justice Department said the search had been authorized by a federal judge after the FBI showed probable cause to believe a crime had been committed.

“This matter has captured the attention of the American public. Merely ‘adequate’ safeguards are not acceptable when the matter at hand involves not only President Trump’s constitutional rights, but also the presumption of executive privilege,” the attorneys wrote.

This privilege, a principle that allows presidents to hide some communications from public disclosure, is what Trump asks that the documents found in Mar-a-Lago be respected and that investigators only review those that are not covered by this figure. .

According to the lawsuit, if the “top secret” documents were created during Trump’s tenure they would be “allegedly privileged.” The Supreme Court said in January that the issue is unprecedented and raises “substantial and serious concerns.”

But investigations suggest the search followed other unsuccessful efforts to have the documents returned. In May, weeks before the search, the Justice Department issued a subpoena for searches with class marks.

One of the witnesses told the FBI that there were classified documents still stored at Mar-a-Lago, so investigators requested the search warrant.

Former President Donald Trump faces several federal and state investigations, not only from the period in which he was president, but also for his private businesses.

According to ‘The New York Times’, Trump had over 300 classified documents at Mar-a-Lago

This Monday, the American newspaper ‘The New York Times’ published, citing sources close to and familiar with the case, that Trump would have stored more than 300 classified documents in his Mar-a-Lago residence.

According to what was reported by the same media, the US Executive was recovering those documents in the space of a year and a half, since Trump left the White House on January 20, 2021.

The 300 documents were returned in three parts: the first, in January 2022, when the US National Archives were able to recover 150 classified files from the former president’s house.

In June of this year, Trump aides delivered the second installment to the Justice Department. And the last one was related to the FBI investigation on August 8.

With EFE, Reuters and AP