The Florida judge who oversaw the trial of Donald Trump’s classified documents has been recused the case against the former president Due to appointment and funding on Monday special counsel Jack Smith it was illegal.
US District Judge Aileen Cannon, Trump’s nominee, said in a 93-page ruling that Smith’s appointment was “unlawful” and unconditional. “The secretary is instructed to close this case,” the judge wrote.
The decision It came on the first day of the Republican National Convention and the weekend after an assassination attempt on the former president.
In a statement about the shooting on Saturday, Trump praised the verdict and said other criminal cases against him should be dismissed. A source who spoke directly with the former president said he was “surprised” but “overjoyed” by Cannon’s decision.
The spokesperson of the White House has sent the requests regarding the case of Trump’s confidential documents to the Ministry of Justice. The Justice Department, the special counsel’s office and the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith as special counsel in November 2022, tasking him with overseeing federal investigations into Trump’s handling and storage of classified documents after leaving office, as well as efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
Trump’s lawyers argued in court papers filed in February that the Constitution’s appointments clause “does not permit the Attorney General to appoint a private citizen or like-minded political ally to exercise the prosecutorial powers of the United States without Senate approval. Thus, Jack Smith lacks standing to prosecute this action.
The special counsel’s team has argued that the attorney general has the authority to appoint statutory “inferior officers” and that previous court decisions have upheld the attorney general’s authority to appoint special counsels.
Such were the arguments of Trump’s legal team unsuccessfully brought against previous special prosecutorsIncluding Robert Mueller, who is overseeing the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, and David Weiss, the special counsel overseeing the Hunter Biden prosecution.
It is unclear whether Cannon’s ruling will affect the case against the president’s son. In his decision, Cannon specifically reflected the appointment of Smith with the appointment of Weiss because Weiss was already a U.S. attorney and Smith was a private citizen at the time of his appointment.
Attorneys for Hunter Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
From there, Smith will be able to appeal the dismissal to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. That court will certainly hear the case and probably hold oral arguments. However, even if it is heard quickly and an appeals court overturns Cannon’s ruling, Monday’s ruling guarantees the classified documents will not go to trial before the election.
This decision does not immediately affect the federal election interference claim. The only courts that can direct the judge in this case, US District Judge Tanya Chutka, to issue a ruling are the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court.
Trump was the first accused last June. The indictment accused him of lying and being scheming to deceive federal investigators To keep sensitive material he knew was still classified after he left the White House.
The indictment states that the documents he carried with him “were information related to the defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries; United States nuclear programs; potential vulnerabilities of the US and its allies to military attack; and plans possible countermeasures in response to a foreign attack.”
In August 2022, the FBI executed a search warrant It found more than 100 classified documents at Trump’s Florida mansion, despite assurances from Trump’s lawyers that all such documents had been returned.
He was later charged with obstructing an investigation. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Cannon’s involvement predated Trump’s indictment. In 2022 he temporarily suspended The FBI’s review of the documents found at Mar-a-Lago, while granting Trump’s request for a special master to review the evidence.
That was the verdict exceeded by a panel of appeals court judges who suggested that Cannon sought to “create an unprecedented exception in our law for former presidents.”
After Trump’s indictment, the criminal case was randomly assigned to Cannon, who has repeatedly been criticized by legal experts for his unorthodox approach to the case. He was once scheduled to go to trial earlier this year, but Cannon postponed the trial indefinitely, citing “numerous” pending motions in the case.
Cannon’s decision comes two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled largely in Trump’s favor in a federal election meddling lawsuit. Supreme Court it was decided that he has immunity for some of his conduct as president, and Chutkan will have to decide what his actions are official presidential acts before taking office, delaying any legal proceedings until at least next year.
In a conservative 6-3 concurring opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that the appointment of Smith as special counsel raised a potential violation of the Constitution’s powers of appointment clause.
“If there is no law establishing the position of the special prosecutor, he cannot proceed with this charge. A private citizen cannot prosecute anyone, let alone a former president,” Thomas wrote.
Trump’s attorneys told Cannon last week that Thomas’ comments “add strength to the motions under the Appointments and Appropriations Clauses.”
One the answer Smith’s office said Friday that a “uniform Fairness agreement … does not bind this Court, nor does it provide a basis for deviating from a uniform conclusion for all courts to consider whether the Attorney General has statutory authority to appoint a Special Counsel.” “