Former US President Donald Trump celebrated another legal victory. He was accused of illegally hoarding classified documents in his home. The judge argues that Special Investigator Smith did not have the authority to initiate the proceedings.
A US judge on Monday dismissed a case accusing Donald Trump of illegally storing classified documents. It was another major legal victory for Trump following the US Supreme Court’s July 1 ruling that, as a former president, Trump is exempt from many of his official activities.
Florida-based U.S. District Judge Eileen Cannon, who was nominated by Trump, ruled that special prosecutor Jack Smith, who is leading the prosecution, was improperly appointed and did not have the authority to initiate the case. “The Court believes that this action by Special Counsel Smith violates two structural foundations of our constitutional system — the role of Congress in appointing constitutional officers and the role of Congress in authorizing expenditures through legislation,” Cannon’s 93-page report concludes. .
The FBI raided Mar-a-Lago in August 2022
In August 2022, the FBI federal police raided Trump’s villa in Florida and seized several classified documents. Trump has also been accused of conspiring to obstruct the investigation: He allegedly tried to hide items from surveillance cameras and took boxes of documents with the help of staffers.
The former president, after leaving office in January 2021, stored classified government documents at his private home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, and then hid them from the reach of the Justice Department, according to the indictment. The documents contain information about military plans and nuclear weapons. They are said to have been kept unsecured at Mar-a-Lago. US presidents must hand over all official documents to the National Archives after they leave office.
Trump pleaded not guilty at a trial in Miami last year. His lawyers tried to stop the case by making various demands.
An unusual comment from the Supreme Court
A few weeks ago, Trump won another case at the Supreme Court. The US Supreme Court has ruled that Trump enjoys broad immunity from prosecution for actions taken while in office. This decision has nothing to do directly with the conclusion of proceedings in Miami – but may indirectly.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote an opinion in the immunity ruling that special counsel Smith was not legally appointed and therefore lacked the authority to impeach Trump. No immediate legal consequences emerged from Thomas’ speech in the judgment.
Trump’s team already made exactly this argument in the indictment against Trump in Florida, rejected by many experts. So Supreme Court Justice Thomas’ opinion was considered highly unusual and was seen by many as a sign toward Florida. (APA/Reuters/Red.)