Lawyers for former President Donald Trump made another attempt on Oct. 11 to postpone the upcoming trial over his alleged mishandling of classified documents, asking the court to delay it until November 2024, after the upcoming presidential election.
The former president is set to go on trial in May as part of the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case in which prosecutors allege he improperly retained top secret documents after he left the White House in 2021 and conspired to obstruct government efforts to get the records back.
Prosecutors accuse President Trump of 40 felony counts, including the willful retention of national defense information, making false statements, and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
He has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing.
In filings submitted in federal court on Wednesday, lawyers for President Trump argued the trial should be delayed for at least six months until the middle of November 2024 at the earliest, citing President Trump’s other federal trial in which he is accused of attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
That trial, in which President Trump has also denied any wrongdoing, is scheduled to begin in March in Washington, just one day before Super Tuesday, which is typically the busiest day of the presidential primary calendar and will see 16 states and territories hold presidential nominating contests.
Lawyers for President Trump have argued he is “absolutely immune from prosecution” under federal law, which they say provides immunity for acts within the “outer perimeter” of a president’s “official responsibility.”
Conviction Wanted ‘No Matter the Cost’
Additionally, lawyers for President Trump argued in Wednesday’s court filings that prosecutors in special counsel Jack Smith’s office were violating President Trump’s due process rights by pushing forward with back-to-back trials over several months in different districts with “wholly different facts,” and despite his objection.
They also claimed Mr. Smith’s office had yet to hand over all of the evidence relating to the classified documents charges against President Trump, writing that they had no access to nine of the documents that the office charged him with illegally retaining in an indictment filed more than three months ago.
“The special counsel’s office is engaged in a reckless effort to try to obtain a conviction of President Trump prior to the 2024 election, no matter the cost,” his lawyers wrote. “The Court should not permit the use of the criminal justice process toward that end.”
Lawyers for President Trump, who is currently facing four criminal cases, had argued earlier this month that conflicts with President Trump’s case and his trial schedule in Washington on separate charges should result in a delayed trial.
Trump Maintains Lead in GOP Presidential Race
However, prosecutors in Mr. Smith’s office later responded to that filing claiming that the defendants had failed to provide any “credible justification to postpone a trial that is still seven months away.”
“The defendants make numerous allegations regarding their access to classified discovery arising from the status of secure facilities, their clearances, and other considerations,” the prosecutors wrote in their response. “Most of the allegations are inaccurate and incomplete; collectively they are misleading.”
“They are fully informed about the charges and the theory of the Government’s case from a highly detailed superseding indictment and comprehensive, organized unclassified and classified discovery,” they contend. “Their unfounded claims of Government noncompliance with discovery obligations do not support their request.”
The presidential election is set for Nov. 5, 2024, and President Trump is currently leading the GOP field, holding a significant lead over competitors including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, according to multiple polls.
Despite garnering strong support for his second presidential bid, it is unclear what the future holds for President Trump, given his mounting legal challenges.
The former president is also set to go on trial in other cases next year, including for charges relating to alleged “hush money” payments made during his 2016 presidential campaign to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and for fraud allegations in a case filed by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
A separate defamation trial involving writer E. Jean Carroll is scheduled for January 2024.
The Epoch Times has contacted the Department of Justice for further comment.
Jack Phillips contributed to this report.
From The Epoch Times
