Judge Cannon Declines Trump Request to Delay Pre-Trial Deadlines in Classified Docs Case

On Thursday, Judge Aileen Cannon rejected Trump’s plea to delay the February 22 pre-trial deadline in the Jack Smith classified documents case.

Despite being appointed by Trump, the judge dismissed his request to extend the deadline while his legal team seeks ways to address classified materials and their admissibility before a jury.

“The deadline to file pre-trial motions (as distinct from motions in limine seeking the exclusion of specific evidence/arguments from being presented during trial) remains February 22, 2024,” Judge Cannon wrote in court filings.

“However, to the extent the Court’s resolution of the pending Motions to Compel Discovery 262 yields a specified need of any party to supplement previously filed pre-trial motions and/or to file evidentiary motions that could not reasonably have been filed by February 22, 2024, the Court will consider such arguments as appropriate, but only upon a particularized and timely showing that events post-dating February 22, 2024, clearly justify additional pre-trial briefing,” Cannon wrote.

https://twitter.com/kyledcheney/status/1758225442916442402?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

In Miami last June, Jack Smith indicted Trump on 37 federal counts.

Trump faced 31 charges of willful retention of national defense information and 6 other process crimes related to conversations with his attorney. In July, Jack Smith added 3 more charges in the investigation of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.

The new indictment alleges Trump was involved in a plot to delete security footage from the property. Over 1.3 million documents and years’ worth of footage are awaiting review.

Recently, Judge Aileen Cannon rejected Special Counsel Jack Smith’s bid to keep government witness names and discovery sealed in the case against Trump.

Smith has been pushing for secrecy around witness identities and opposed releasing discovery materials that hint at another FBI probe, but Judge Cannon refused these requests last Tuesday despite heavily redacted documents produced by the special counsel’s office.

“Although substantiated witness safety and intimidation concerns can form a valid basis for overriding the strong presumption in favor of public access, the Special Counsel’s sparse and undifferentiated Response fails to provide the Court with the necessary factual basis to justify sealing,” Cannon wrote last Tuesday.

Trump faced 31 charges of willful retention of national defense information and 6 other process crimes related to conversations with his attorney.

In July, Jack Smith added 3 more charges in the investigation of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.

The new indictment alleges Trump was involved in a plot to delete security footage from the property. Over 1.3 million documents and years’ worth of footage are awaiting review.

Recently, Judge Aileen Cannon rejected Special Counsel Jack Smith’s bid to keep government witness names and discovery sealed in the case against Trump.

Smith has been pushing for secrecy around witness identities and opposed releasing discovery materials that hint at another FBI probe, but Judge Cannon refused these requests last Tuesday despite heavily redacted documents produced by the special counsel’s office.

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