Judge Aileen Cannon on Tuesday indefinitely postponed former President Donald Trump's classified documents trial in Florida.
In an order, Cannon wrote that the trial start date originally scheduled for May 20 is delayed in order to address issues concerning classified evidence that need to be resolved before the federal criminal case can be presented before a jury. She did not set a new date.
Cannon wrote in the filing that "finalization of a trial date at this juncture...would be imprudent and inconsistent with the Court's duty to fully and fairly consider the various pending pre-trial motions before the Court..."
Newsweek reached out to a representative for Trump via email on Tuesday night for comment.
The Context
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 40 federal charges concerning allegations he illegally retained classified materials after he left the White House in January 2021 and then obstructed the federal attempt to retrieve them.
The former president has meanwhile been in court in New York for a hush-money trial. Now in its fourth week, that trial will determine whether Trump falsified business records over payments, allegedly facilitated by his former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen, to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to keep an alleged affair secret before the 2016 election, as alleged in a criminal indictment.
What We Know
Tuesday's decision by Cannon followed her granting Trump a delay in the trial a day earlier. On Monday, she temporarily stayed a May 9 deadline for Trump and his two co-defendants in the federal case to submit court filings.
Prosecutors have sought a July trial date for the classified documents case, but Cannon wrote in her new filing that there are "eight substantive pre-trial motions" she has to first decide.
Views
Dave Aronberg, the state attorney in Florida's Palm Beach County, said Cannon's decision might benefit Special Counsel Jack Smith, who brought the classified documents case against Trump as well as a case for alleged crimes Trump committed during his presidency to reverse the 2020 election results.
"This is good for Jack Smith. This trial was never going to happen before the election. Now that it's off the calendar, the DC election interference case can proceed as soon as (or IF) the Supreme Court gives the green light," Aronberg wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, said the decision is a loss for Smith.
"MASSIVE WIN FOR DONALD TRUMP," Greene said on X. "Judge Cannon just now postponed the DOJ's documents case against Trump indefinitely. JACK SMITH LOSES AGAIN."
What's Next
If Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, wins the presidential election this November, he could order the U.S. Department of Justice to drop the federal classified documents investigation if the case has not yet been brought to trial.
Update 05/07/24 6:27 a.m. ET: This story has been updated to include more information.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jon Jackson is an Associate Editor at Newsweek based in New York. His focus is on reporting on the Ukraine ... Read more
