Specifically, the legal team objected to what it said was Dearie’s request to “disclose specific information about the declassification to the courts and the government.”
Judge Erin Cannon, who oversees the special master file review process, did not ask Trump’s lawyers to say whether or not about 100 documents marked as classified were seized by the FBI in August. 8 may not actually be classified.
Trump’s lawyers have repeatedly suggested in court filings that the former president could have declassified the documents — but they have not actually asserted that he did.
In Monday’s filing, Trump’s lawyers wrote They don’t want Deere to force Trump to “full and specific disclosure of defenses to any subsequent prosecutions that are not expressly required in the district court order” — a remarkable statement, at least acknowledging the former It is possible that the president would otherwise face criminal charges against his aides.
The Justice Department is investigating Mar-a-Lago’s possible mishandling of classified documents and possible hiding or destruction of government records. A key issue in the investigation is that even as Trump’s team responded to a grand jury subpoena for all documents to be kept at Mar-a-Lago, and aides reportedly said all relevant materials were turned over, the FBI search was renewed. About 100 such documents were found.
The government filing Monday night did not say how Dearie should review classified documents.prosecutors said They are waiting to see whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta will grant their request to set aside Cannon’s decision to include classified documents in the special master review — leaving about 11,000 unclassified documents and other items.
Prosecutors said classified material is by definition government property and cannot be protected by privilege.Cannon’s order bars prosecutors The use of confidential material in a criminal investigation pending the completion of an external review.
Derie, the former chief federal judge in New York, is scheduled to meet for the first time with Trump’s lawyers and Justice Department prosecutors on Tuesday afternoon. The meeting in Dearie Court in Brooklyn Federal Court will focus on how to proceed.
The Justice Department document said a third-party vendor should be hired to scan the seized documents into a secure software system. Trump’s lawyers will then review these unclassified documents and decide which ones should be blocked by criminal investigators because of attorney-client or executive privilege. Prosecutors will take note of any disagreements with Trump’s defense team, and Derie will resolve any disputes.
“FBI agents will be present and observe the scanning process to maintain the chain of custody of the evidence,” the government wrote.
In earlier filings, the Justice Department unsuccessfully argued that a special host was not needed and that Trump, as a former president, cannot assert executive privilege in this investigation. Prosecutors also said that temporarily barring the government from using the documents in the investigation could pose a national security risk.
She has ordered Dearie to complete his review by November. 30 and said he should prioritize classifying classified documents, although she did not provide a timetable for when that part would have to be completed. The Justice Department said it hoped its proposal on Monday would help complete the review “effectively and in a timely manner.”
Trump’s team said in its filing that the administration should begin making classified documents available for review as early as next week by Dirie, who previously served on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that handles sensitive national security cases.
In its Monday filing, the Justice Department urged Derie to check with the National Archives and Records Administration, the federal agency responsible for maintaining and tracking government records, as it conducts the review.
It also advised Dearie to conduct weekly reviews with all parties via video or audio conference to resolve issues and ensure a smooth review process.
The administration said it had reviewed all of the seized documents before Trump asked the special director to isolate any that should have been kept secret from investigators because of attorney-client privilege. The government said the filtering panel, approved by the magistrate who also granted the search warrant, set aside 64 sets of documents — made up of about 520 pages — that may be considered protected by attorney-client privilege.