![]() ![]() “This is a massive case and it’s impossible to get ready unless we’re able to enlist the help” of others, he said.Ĭhutkan also struck a compromise between what prosecutors and the defense requested from the court by deciding to allow Trump to review sensitive material without being accompanied by his legal team, but she retained the position that his notes must be checked to ensure he didn’t write down personally identifiable information. Lauro said not allowing the Trump legal team to use volunteers to process the evidence it will receive from the special counsel in the coming weeks will “hamstring us in incredible ways.” “I’m not comfortable with that broad a definition, which could include just about anyone,” she said. Trump’s legal team, led by Lauro, suggested in a 29-page motion Monday that the court should loosely define and expand whom Trump can share sensitive information with to prepare his defense to “volunteer attorneys,” expert witnesses, investigators or others without “paid employment arrangements.” Chutkan rejected that request, saying it was so overly broad that even an unindicted co-conspirator could obtain access to the information. Prosecutors said they feared Trump would obstruct the case by publicly sharing information that could interfere with finding an impartial jury or serve to intimidate witnesses. She outlined what the order would include during the hearing, and filed it with the court later in the day. Chutkan noted that the government can review whether the small amount of nonsensitive material it planned to hand over to the defense should be redesignated as sensitive. Instead, as Trump’s team requested, she narrowed the wording to prohibit Trump and his attorneys from disclosing materials deemed sensitive. “I cannot and I will not factor into my decisions the influence it will have on a political campaign on either side,” she said.įor the protective order, Chutkan rejected Smith’s request to restrict Trump and his legal team from disclosing any materials it receives as part of discovery to anyone other than his legal team, possible witnesses, the witnesses’ lawyers or others approved by the court. “We are in uncharted waters, we have a defendant running for president and his opponent has the DOJ bringing charges against him,” Lauro said.Ĭhutkan stressed that the 2024 campaign will not influence the decisions she makes in the case. Trump’s lawyer, John Lauro, repeatedly mentioned the 2024 election during the hearing, saying that restrictions on what information Trump can share online or on the campaign trail as he seeks the GOP presidential nomination could harm his chances. ![]() Trump has criticized the limitations Smith wanted included in the protective order, saying that such restrictions on what he can talk about would impinge on his right to free speech. Trump is charged with engaging in conspiracies to overturn the results of the 2020 election and keep him in power. Defendant’s free speech is subject to the release conditions imposed at arraignment and it must yield to the orderly administration of justice,” Chutkan said. ![]() Trump, like every American, has a 1st Amendment right to free speech. ![]() A protective order is a normal part of a felony criminal trial. Trump’s legal team and members of Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith’s team appeared before Chutkan at a hearing to resolve the language that will appear in a protective order dictating how information and evidence in the discovery process can be shared before and during the trial. She approved restrictions on what evidence he and his legal team can publicly discuss before the trial. District Judge Tanya Chutkan said Friday that former President Trump’s right to free speech is “not absolute” ahead of the trial over efforts to overturn the 2020 election and stay in power. ![]()
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