(The Center Square) – Former President Donald Trump wants a judge to postpone a discovery deadline in the case because his legal team said prosecutors have not provided the materials promptly.
Trump’s attorneys argued in their latest motion that while prosecutors have produced 680,000 unclassified documents and emails, totaling nearly 1.3 million pages, not all materials have been turned over. In particular, they said that special counsel Jack Smith’s team of prosecutors turned over discovery materials on Oct. 6 that “nearly doubled the volume of classified discovery in this case.”
Trump’s team has said repeatedly that they need more time to review and respond to both classified and unclassified discovery matters due to the sheer amount of it and the logistics required to view classified material, which must be done in a sensitive compartmented information facility, or SCIF.
Prosecutors have said the bulk of the case was built around the unclassified materials, most of which were turned over at the start of the case.
In June, Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 counts that allege he kept classified military documents, shared them with people who didn’t have security clearance, and tried to block 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 a superseding indictment that allege Trump attempted to delete surveillance video at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
Trump’s attorneys argued that all aspects of the discovery, both classified and unclassified, inform the other and can’t be looked at separately. They further said the discovery they’ve gotten so far has raised additional questions that may prompt more discovery.
For example, Trump’s team has requested information about “certain Department of Justice components and the National Archives and Records Administration; policies and procedures regarding NARA’s historical practices for handling classified information and basis for referring or not referring matters relating to the possible mishandling of classified information to other government agencies.”
Both President Joe Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence have had issues with classified documents. Biden is the Democrat incumbent in the 2024 presidential race. Pence is seeking the Republican nomination. Trump is the frontrunner for the GOP nomination.
Classified documents were discovered at Pence’s Carmel, Indiana, home in January. The FBI later conducted a five-hour voluntary search of Pence’s home and found another classified document. In June, the U.S. Department of Justice closed its investigation into the matter without bringing charges.
Between November 2022 and January 2023, Biden’s attorneys found classified documents at his former office and his Delaware home. Biden voluntarily allowed federal authorities to search his properties for additional materials. To date, no charges have been filed in that case.
Trump’s attorneys previously indicated they were considering filing claims of selective prosecution, a procedural defense that argues the criminal justice system discriminated against Trump by bringing charges. But such a motion could be difficult to prove, according to legal experts.
Prosecutors have said they have promptly provided documents to the defense attorneys and will continue to do so. They want to keep the case on schedule for a trial in May 2024.
Trump’s legal team most recently requested that be pushed back until mid-November 2024, after the presidential election.
U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon will decide the schedule of the case. Trump appointed her to the bench.
