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- Former President Donald Trump appeared to have lost a bombshell appeal that would require one of his attorneys to testify before a federal grand jury in a criminal investigation into the keeping of classified government records, NBC News confirmed on Wednesday.
- The appeal, which has been processed with unprecedented speed, presented enough evidence for a Washington, D.C. judge to allow special counsel Jack Smith to establish that Trump committed the crime through his lawyers. This was done after ruling that
- In his ruling, Judge Beryl Howell cited a so-called criminal fraud exception to the privilege that ordered Trump attorney Evan Corcoran to answer questions before a grand jury.
- Since at least last year, Trump has been under investigation by the DOJ for deleting hundreds of government documents, many of them classified, and storing them in his club, Maralago.
Former President Donald Trump’s legal team, led by M. Evan Corcoran, arrives at Brooklyn Federal Court. September 20, 2022 in New York City.
Alex Kent | Getty Images
Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday appears to have lost a bombing sentence appeal in a criminal investigation into classified records kept at his Mar-a-Lago Florida mansion after he left the White House, NBC said. The news was confirmed on Wednesday.
The decision could force one of his attorneys to testify before a federal grand jury in a criminal investigation. NBC said it was done after a Washington, D.C. judge determined that DOJ special counsel Jack Smith, through his lawyers, had produced sufficient evidence to establish that Trump committed the crime, NBC said. citing sources. procedure.
Attorneys are generally not compelled to testify against their clients by attorney-client privilege. This protects your communication.
But as ABC News first reported, Judge Beryl Howell applied a so-called criminal fraud exception to that privilege when he ordered Trump attorney Evan Corcoran to answer questions before a grand jury on Friday. bottom.
Sealed appeals court records of the case, believed to be Trump’s, show that the appeals court rejected Trump’s bid and ordered both parties to comply with Howell’s ruling.
Since at least last year, Trump has been under investigation by the Justice Department for deleting hundreds of government documents, many of which were classified and stored at his Palm Beach club Maralago. By law, the president must surrender such records upon his departure from office.
Smith, who was appointed to oversee the investigation, also oversaw efforts by Trump and others to restore those records by federal officials in the months leading up to the FBI investigation of Mar-a-Lago last August. We are investigating whether they have obstructed justice by blocking it.
NBC previously asked DOJ officials to submit a statement last June from Corcoran that Christina Bob, another Trump attorney, had combed through classified records owned by Trump and found no further documents. It was reported that he was told to That statement turned out to be false, the raid found.
Trump asked the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn Howell’s decision.
A sealed Court of Appeals lawsuit, whose publicly available docket corresponds to Trump’s case, shows that the court accepted the appeal on Tuesday and reserved Howell’s sentencing later in the day.
The court then ordered Trump’s legal team to file the appeal documents by midnight, giving the DOJ until 6 a.m. Wednesday to respond to the appeal motion.
It is highly unusual for a required submission to be processed so quickly with a midnight deadline.
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