Name: Judge Rejects Trump Motion to Dismiss Documents Case
Uploaded: 2024-04-05T05:01:04.000Z
Description: U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon has denied former President Donald Trump's motion to dismiss an indictment alleging he mishandled classified documents, based on the Presidential Records Act.

Jack Bradley is a Washington correspondent for NTD News based in Washington, D.C. Jack previously anchored "NTD Newsroom" and worked as an assistant producer for the show. 

Jack Bradley

NTD Plus

News

News with integrity, from the U.S. and around the world. Focused reports and analyses that shed light on major issues the world deserves to know. NTD Evening News airs daily at 6 p.m. ET.

NTD Evening News

China’s Broken Promises Loom Over New Trade Deals

David Lam is a national correspondent based in California and a part-time anchor for "NTD Tonight." Before joining NTD he was a financial analyst.

David Lam

Californians React as Trump Calls for Gas Tax Suspension

Arleen Richards is NTD's legal correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers all major legal stories. Arleen holds a Doctor of Law (J.D.).


Arleen Richards

Federal Agencies Announce ‘Summer Surge’ of Law Enforcement into DC Ahead of 250th Anniversary

Christina Corona is a California-based reporter for NTD News. She primarily covers California news, politics, and entertainment.  

Christina Corona

Trump Administration Reports Zero Border Releases

Arian Pasdar is an international correspondent for NTD News based in South America. His reporting focuses on immigration and key events in Latin America.

Arian Pasdar

US to Host 1st Ever World Cup Final Halftime Show, Featuring Shakira, Madonna

Savannah Pointer is a politics reporter for The Epoch Times. She can be reached at savannah.pointer@epochtimes.us

Savannah Hulsey Pointer

Jason Perry is an Army veteran and NTD's National Security Correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City. Jason primarily covers border security, national defense, foreign wars, and veterans' issues.

Jason Perry

Health News

Texas Children's Hospital to Open First-Ever Detransition Clinic Under Deal With DOJ

Sam Wang is a Washington correspondent for NTD News based in Washington, D.C. Sam covers politics on Capitol Hill, and U.S.-China relations. 

Sam Wang

Citizens Honor Police for Their Service and Sacrifice

Cary Dunst is the news anchor for NTD Evening News. He is also the co-host of NTD Good Morning.


Cary Dunst

Trump ‘Projecting American Influence and Leadership’ on Iran Issue in Beijing: China Expert

Chris Bob is a reporter for NTD and a host of "Profiles of Service." He is also a small business owner. Chris graduated from Union College with a concentration in politics and religion in Russia and the former Soviet Union.

Chris Bob

Senate Panel Advances Crypto Regulation Bill

Jason Blair is a national correspondent for NTD News based in California. 

Jason Blair

Lawmakers Weigh ‘Sanctuary’ Polices After Woman’s Death in Virginia

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 15)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 14)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 13)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 12)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 11)

Don Ma is an anchor and senior business correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City. Don is the anchor and producer of NTD's "Business Matters," which airs weekdays at 4:30 pm ET.

Don Ma

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 10)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 9)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 8)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 7)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 6)

NTD Newsroom comprises teams of reporters, editors, and producers assigned to cover breaking news and other stories.


NTD Newsroom

Fast, compelling, first-hand news from China. China in Focus airs Monday–Friday at 8 p.m. ET.

China in Focus

China Sends Warships to Pacific Drill as Tensions With Japan Rise

Reuters is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages.

Reuters

We present news that is truthful and based on facts, outside of the political fog. Instead of focusing on the negative things happening around us, our mission is to give our viewers a good morning with empathetic and uplifting stories. Our aim is to provide an antidote to negativity by shining a light on the best side of people. We speak to inspiring people who positively impact communities, pursue topics that represent our common human values, and will never miss an opportunity to bring you heartwarming stories.

NTD Good Morning

2 US Embassy Personnel Assigned to Cartel Case Killed in Car Accident

The Associated Press is an American not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. 

The Associated Press

US News

Gunman Kills 8 Children, Including 7 of His Own, in Louisiana Mass Shooting

Flora Hua is a reporter based at NTD's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers China news, U.S.-China relations, and human rights issues. Flora primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus."  

Flora Hua

Trump: Seized Iranian Ship May Have ‘A Gift From China’

Joseph Lord is a congressional reporter for The Epoch Times.


Joseph Lord

Aldgra Fredly is a freelance writer covering U.S. and Asia Pacific news for The Epoch Times.

Aldgra Fredly

Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani Hospitalized in Critical Condition: Spokesman

Wildfires Across Georgia and Florida Have Destroyed Nearly 50 Homes and Are Forcing Evacuations

News you can trust from the U.S. and around the world. Critical information and insight. We cover the stories that others don’t. NTD News Today airs Monday–Friday at 11 a.m. ET.

NTD News Today

US Warns of China Hacks via Routers, Smart Devices

Juliet Song is an international correspondent exclusively covering China news for NTD. She primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus," covering U.S.-China relations, the Chinese regime's human rights abuses, and domestic unrest inside China.

Juliet Song

2 Americans Among Suspected Communist Rebels Killed in Clashes With Troops, Philippine Officials Say

Ryan Morgan is a reporter for The Epoch Times focusing on military and foreign affairs. He was previously a news writer for NTD. 


Ryan Morgan

Mari Otsu is NTD's White House correspondent based in Washington. 

Mari Otsu

World News

Middle East

Iran

3 US Warships Fend Off Iranian Attacks, Trump Says Ceasefire Still Holds

3 Dead in Suspected Hantavirus Outbreak on Cruise Ship in Atlantic Ocean: WHO

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon has denied former President Donald Trump's motion to dismiss an indictment alleging he mishandled classified documents, based on the Presidential Records Act.

"Bound by the four corners of the Superseding Indictment," the charges in the indictment "make no reference to the Presidential Records Act, nor do they rely on that statute for purposes of stating an offense," the judge wrote in an April 4 <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.flsd.648652/gov.uscourts.flsd.648652.431.0.pdf">order</a>.

President Trump brought a total of four motions to dismiss charges in this case on different bases, and the judge <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/live-updates-federal-judge-hears-motions-to-dismiss-trump-case-5606183">heard oral arguments</a> on two of the motions in March. Hours after the hearing, she denied the motion to dismiss based on unconstitutional vagueness.

The Presidential Records Act defense was also argued at the March 14 hearing, with the judge expressing skepticism that the challenge was being brought in the appropriate form.

President Trump is being charged under a law that makes it illegal to have unauthorized possession of documents related to national defense. The Presidential Records Act doesn't make any mention of how national defense or classified information should be treated.

Judge Cannon had said that those arguments—which she interpreted as a dispute of facts—should be made in connection with jury instructions.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-attorneys-renew-push-to-dismiss-classified-documents-charges-5620914">Opening the door</a> for such arguments to be made in court, she ordered the parties to submit jury instructions that contemplated competing scenarios of whether President Trump was able to designate the files in his possession as "personal" under the Presidential Records Act.

Prosecutors <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/jack-smith-urges-federal-judge-to-change-course-in-trump-case-warns-of-consequences-5620807">denounced</a> the judge for this order. In their required April 2 filing of the hypothetical jury instructions, they argued the judge used a "fundamentally flawed legal premise" and that the judge hadn't correctly applied the law.

They argued for the finalization of jury instructions before a charge conference and presentation of evidence and defenses, which the judge rejected in the April 4 order as "unprecedented and unjust."

"The Court's Order soliciting preliminary draft instructions on certain counts should not be misconstrued as declaring a final definition on any essential element or asserted defense in this case," she wrote.

"Nor should it be interpreted as anything other than what it was: a genuine attempt, in the context of the upcoming trial, to better understand the parties' competing positions and the questions to be submitted to the jury in this complex case of first impression."

Prosecutors had cited a case in which an appeals court found that a "clearly erroneous jury instruction" warranted an order to a lower court to remedy the error.

Judge Cannon suggested that prosecutors could appeal or seek higher court review if they believed she was wrong about the law, writing that any party was "free to avail itself of whatever appellate options it sees fit to invoke, as permitted by law."
<h2>Jury Instruction Exercise</h2>
In the defense's jury instructions, they wrote that President Trump had received classified briefings and reviewed related classified documents in several private locations outside the White House, including his residence in Bedminster, New Jersey, and Trump Tower in New York.

They argued that under the Presidential Records Act, President Trump had sole discretion to designate any documents in his possession as personal and that by taking documents out of the White House after his term in office, he had designated those documents personal and therefore had the authorization to have them.

Prosecutors argued that the Presidential Records Act has nothing to do with the indictment and that Judge Cannon was wrong in her interpretation that this was a dispute of fact, rather than law.

They urged the judge to "promptly" decide whether she was reading the Presidential Records Act as relevant to the indictment so that the prosecutors could seek review "before jeopardy attaches."

Prosecutors argued that the judge's withholding of such a decision was injecting "substantial delay into trial" and blocked their ability to seek review.

<em>From <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/judge-rejects-trump-motion-to-dismiss-while-criticizing-special-counsel-request-as-unjust-5621983">The Epoch Times</a></em>

Latest

trump

Videos

Politics

01_Lead Story

04_Top Stories

Premium Picks

Latest Clips

App Notification

Management

Catherine Yang is a reporter for The Epoch Times based in New York.

Catherine Yang

2024 Elections

02_Second Lead

Donald Trump

Trump Indictments

Latest and breaking news, documentaries, movies, and lifestyle content on NTD+.
 
Empower your knowledge and elevate your spirit with NTD+, your go-to destination for truthful news, insightful documentaries, and captivating lifestyle content that enriches your life.