Miami, Florida – Special counsel prosecutors have submitted a sealed exhibit regarding threats made against a potential trial witness to former President Donald Trump’s lawyers. This comes after a federal judge overseeing the case ordered the exhibit to be turned over, despite objections from the prosecutors. The exhibit details a series of threats made against a witness who could testify against Trump in the trial and is the subject of a criminal investigation by a US attorney’s office.
The sealed exhibit has been a point of contention between prosecutors and Trump’s legal team. Prosecutors had initially wanted to withhold it from Trump’s lawyers, but the presiding US district judge, Aileen Cannon, ordered the exhibit to be transmitted to them after reviewing its contents and determining that it did not warrant protection.
The prosecutors complied with the order before the Saturday deadline, choosing not to challenge it. This move is surprising, as the justice department typically avoids disclosing details of an ongoing investigation, especially one related to the primary defendant in the case.
The justice department’s decision not to appeal the order may be influenced by the exhibit itself, which is part of a motion from prosecutors asking the judge to reconsider two earlier rulings. These rulings would potentially make public the identities of numerous other witnesses who could testify against Trump.
The legal battle surrounding this case began in January when Trump filed a motion to compel discovery, requesting that prosecutors turn over additional information to aid in his defense. The motion, partially redacted, included 70 accompanying exhibits, many of which were sealed and redacted. Trump’s lawyers requested that these sealed filings be made public, as many of the names included in the exhibits were already known to have been involved in the documents investigation.
Prosecutors asked the judge to deny Trump’s request to unseal his exhibits, arguing that it could expose witness identities, details about a separate FBI probe, and sensitive “Signals” intelligence. In February, Judge Cannon issued two rulings, allowing personal identifying information and “Signals” intelligence to remain sealed but permitting other information to be made public.
These rulings were unexpected, as prosecutors had previously been successful in keeping materials that could reveal witness identities confidential. They formally asked Judge Cannon to reconsider her orders, which could potentially pave the way for an appeal to be made at the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.
Judge Cannon has faced scrutiny from the 11th Circuit before. She had previously issued rulings favoring Trump in the underlying criminal investigation but was later ruled to have overstepped her legal authority.
As part of the prosecutors’ motion for reconsideration, they asked to submit another set of sealed exhibits alongside their court filings. Judge Cannon allowed this but ruled that they should not be ex parte, meaning they should also be turned over to Trump’s legal team.
The developments in this case highlight the ongoing legal battles and challenges surrounding the prosecution of Donald Trump. With further hearings and decisions expected, this case continues to draw attention and scrutiny.