Judge ignores Trump’s request to view classified documents at Mar-a-Lago

(The Center Square) – A federal judge ruled Wednesday that former President Donald Trump can only review or discuss classified documents in secure facilities as he faces charges of illegally keeping sensitive classified materials after leaving office.

U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, said all classified documents must be reviewed in a sensitive compartmented information facility, or SCIF.

Trump had asked the judge to have the government reestablish a secure facility at Mar-a-Lago so he could discuss purported classified documents that he’s accused of illegally keeping there with his attorneys.

Prosecutors had asked that all classified document discussions and reviews take place in a SCIF.

Cannon’s ruling on Wednesday came after a sealed hearing on Tuesday.

- Advertisement -

She warned Trump and his co-defendants against speaking out about classified documents if such documents are leaked.

“If classified information enters the public domain, the defense and the Defendant are precluded from making private or public statements where the statements would reveal personal knowledge from non-public sources regarding the classified status of the information or would disclose that the defense had personal access to classified information confirming, contradicting, or otherwise relating to the information already in the public domain,” Cannon wrote in the order. “If there is any question whether information is classified, the defense must handle that information as though it is classified.”

The judge’s ruling doesn’t address whether a SCIF could be set up at Mar-a-Lago or any of Trump’s other properties, but said the SCIF areas would be overseen by a chief information security officer from the federal government designated to manage the classified information in the case.

The former president had wanted to be able to discuss the documents at home instead of a secure public facility in southern Florida.

“This request is based on the immense practical and logistical hurdles and costs that make it virtually impossible for President Trump to make regular trips to a public facility to discuss classified discovery material with counsel as necessary to conduct a defense consistent with the rights afforded by the Constitution,” Trump’s attorneys Christopher Kise and Todd Blanche had written in an earlier motion. “Both the required security protocol surrounding President Trump’s travel and the challenges surrounding the media’s and public’s intense focus on this prosecution pose an enormous obstacle to our ability to provide counsel to President Trump regarding classified matters, which are, no doubt, essential to this case.”

In June, Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 counts that allege he kept sensitive military documents, shared them with people who didn’t have security clearance, and tried to get around the government’s efforts to get them back. In August, Trump’s attorneys entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf to additional charges in the documents case. Charges in a superseding indictment allege Trump attempted to delete surveillance video at his Mar-A-Lago home in Florida.

spot_img
spot_img

Hot this week

Health care company agrees to pay $22.5 million to settle claims of over billing

A health care company agreed to pay nearly $22.5...

African and Caribbean Nations Call for Reparations for Slave Trade, Propose Global Fund

Nations across Africa and the Caribbean, deeply impacted by...

Sports betting expert offers advice on paying taxes for gambling winnings

(The Center Square) – Tax season is underway, and...

Business association ‘disappointed’ by WA L&I’s proposed workers comp rate hike

(The Center Square) – The Association of Washington Business...

Entertainment district benefits don’t outweigh the cost, economists say

(The Center Square) — Weeks later, after more details...

Unions Sue Trump Administration Over Federal Worker Firings

(AURN News) — Two powerhouse unions, the American Federation...

States sue feds over denying grants for illegal immigrants

(The Center Square) – Democratic attorneys general from 21...

Ohio Democrats want redistricting commission to get to work

(The Center Square) – Less than 24 hours after...

New Hampshire sued over anti-loitering law

(The Center Square) – New Hampshire is being sued...

Operation Twin Shield: Immigration fraud uncovered in Minneapolis, St. Paul

(The Center Square) – A multi-agency investigation has uncovered...

Report: Michigan improves but taxpayers owe $4,100 each

(The Center Square) – Michigan ranked 32nd nationally, according...

Maine residential Amazon delivery includes 250 election ballots, rice, plates

(The Center Square) – Maine Republicans are calling for...

Louisiana achieves top reading gains while spending far less per student

(The Center Square) − Louisiana spends less per student...

More like this
Related

Unions Sue Trump Administration Over Federal Worker Firings

(AURN News) — Two powerhouse unions, the American Federation...

States sue feds over denying grants for illegal immigrants

(The Center Square) – Democratic attorneys general from 21...

Ohio Democrats want redistricting commission to get to work

(The Center Square) – Less than 24 hours after...

New Hampshire sued over anti-loitering law

(The Center Square) – New Hampshire is being sued...