The judge overseeing Donald Trump's classified documents trial has ordered the public release of a grand-jury testimony by one of the former president's co-defendants.
In court filings on Thursday, Judge Aileen Cannon told Trump aide Walt Nauta, who is accused of obstruction in the federal case, to release a transcript of his June 2022 grand jury testimony and file it by April 24.
In her ruling, Cannon ordered that the transcript be redacted to remove references that could identify witnesses in the trial.
The Context
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 40 charges related to allegedly retaining classified materials after he left office in January 2021, then obstructing the federal attempt to retrieve them.
Nauta, a former Mar-a-Lago valet driver, is accused, along with the resort's property manager, Carlos De Oliveira, of trying to obstruct the federal attempt to retrieve sensitive materials from Trump's Florida home, as well as allegedly plotting to delete Mar-a-Lago security footage.
What We Know
On April 12, Cannon heard arguments on the continued sealing of certain grand jury materials in the classified documents case.
Cannon has now ruled that a transcript of Nauta's previous testimony can be made public, but that the names of possible government witnesses and other potential key names must be redacted.
Special Counsel Jack Smith's team, which filed the federal charges against Trump, Nauta and De Oliveira, was directed in the same order to file a status report under seal detailing the "landscape" of grand jury materials and proceedings implicated in the case by April 26.
In separate filings, Cannon dismissed requests by Nauta and De Oliveira to have the case dismissed against them, stating that federal prosecutors have met the legal threshold to file obstruction charges against them.
Nauta and De Oliveira claimed they were unaware that they were allegedly helping Trump move boxes of classified materials, or that they were sought by the government.
"Any particular challenges to the Special Counsel's evidentiary showing can be made at trial, where the Special Counsel will bear the entire burden of proof as to all essential elements of the obstruction offenses," Cannon wrote.
What Next?
The trial date in the classified documents case has yet to be finalized, with Cannon expected to postpone it beyond its current start date of May 20.
Trump's lawyers suggested a potential August start date, as required by a court order, while also urging that the trial not take place until 2025 because of Trump's campaign commitments.
Smith's team previously told Cannon that the trial should take place in July.
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Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, domestic policy ... Read more
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