Former President Donald Trump is urging a Florida judge to dismiss the criminal case against him, where he is charged with illegally retaining classified documents. Trump's lawyers argue that presidential immunity shields him from prosecution, citing his decision to designate the papers as 'personal' records under the Presidential Records Act during his time in the White House.
In a series of motions, Trump's legal team challenged the case brought by special counsel Jack Smith, echoing arguments that were recently rejected by a federal appeals court in a separate 2020 election interference case in Washington. Despite the appeals court's ruling against Trump's claim of absolute immunity for official actions, his lawyers maintain that the decision was flawed and should not be followed in the classified documents case.
The charges against Trump involve allegations of hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate and obstructing efforts to retrieve them. Prosecutors claim that the sensitive documents found at the estate posed risks to national security and accused Trump of attempting to obstruct the federal investigation by asking a staffer to delete camera footage.
The trial for the classified documents case is currently set for May, with Judge Aileen Cannon indicating a willingness to revisit the trial date during a pretrial conference in March. This case is one of four criminal cases facing the former president as he seeks to return to the White House in November.
Another case against Trump, accusing him of scheming to overturn his 2020 election loss, was initially scheduled for trial in March but was postponed as Trump pursued claims of presidential immunity. His legal team has asked the Supreme Court to maintain the hold on the case while continuing to argue for immunity from criminal prosecution.
The Supreme Court's decision on Trump's immunity claims could impact the timing of the 2020 election case trial, potentially influencing the political landscape. If successful, Trump could use his executive authority to influence the outcome of the federal cases or explore the possibility of a self-pardon, a legally untested scenario.
