Attorneys for former President Donald Trump are fighting federal prosecutors’ efforts simplify the arguments and potential applications in 2020 election interference caseargues that it could rightfully affect the 2024 race for the White House.
In documents In a federal court filing in Washington on Monday, defense attorneys argued that special counsel Jack Smith’s plans to file a massive briefing on whether certain actions from the Trump presidency were official or unofficial were improper and should not have been allowed.
“Departures from these practices should never be countered because they risk prosecutors influencing national elections, but the situation is even worse here, where the Special Prosecutor’s Office is attempting to do so by turning the criminal process on its head to prosecute 180.” The page is a false hit piece,” Trump’s lawyers argued.
Prosecutors from Smith’s office said such an appeal was necessary because it would limit the number of possible appeals by addressing Supreme Court concerns about presidential immunity in the case. They asked U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing the election interference case, to allow them to file a 180-page brief on the matter by Thursday.
Trump’s lawyers urged the judge to dismiss “this monstrosity.”
“The required 180-page briefing would amount to a premature and improper Special Counsel report,” the attorneys argued, arguing that Smith’s “adjustment” proposal “is the type of “high-speed” proceedings before the 2024 presidential election. The court already has criticized.”
They also called it an attempt by prosecutors to “properly distribute their biased complaint list.”
Smith’s office declined to comment Monday night.
It’s unclear how much of that will be made public if Chutkan allows prosecutors to file their motion.
In a separate place giving over the weekend, Smith’s office said “the opening brief and its exhibits contain a significant amount of Sensitive Material as defined by the Protective Order” and that redaction would be required.
It’s Trump accused Conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct official proceedings, conspiracy against rights in connection with efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, obstructing and attempting to obstruct an official process.
He pleaded not guilty and said that the indictment was politically motivated. The case was originally scheduled to go to trial last March, but was put on hold for several months while Trump’s lawyers went to the Supreme Court to argue that his actions were defensible. presidential immunity.
The high court ruled in July that some of his actions were protected by immunity and sent the case back to Chutkan to determine whether some of Trump’s other actions were official or unofficial.
No trial date has been set.