New charges in the Trump classified documents case may postpone the trial by a few months, potentially bringing it closer to the 2024 election.

New charges in the Trump classified documents case may postpone the trial by a few months, potentially bringing it closer to the 2024 election.

New Indictment in Trump’s Classified Records Case Could Delay Trial by Months

A new twist has been added to the already sensational case against Donald Trump regarding his handling of classified records. The Justice Department’s superseding indictment, announced on Thursday, introduces additional charges and a third defendant, potentially pushing the trial date back by “a couple of months,” according to a former federal prosecutor.

Joining Trump and his aide, Walt Nauta, who both pleaded not guilty to the charges in June, is Carlos De Oliveira, a maintenance worker at Mar-a-Lago. De Oliveira stands accused of conspiring with Trump to delete surveillance footage from the resort. This inclusion of a new defendant marks a significant development in the case, as pointed out by defense attorney Ken White, a founding partner of Brown White & Osborn LLP.

The addition of De Oliveira necessitates additional steps before the trial can proceed. This includes summoning the new defendant and securing legal representation for him. As a result, the trial expected to begin in May 2024 may experience a delay, as White suggests.

De Oliveira is slated to make an appearance in a Miami federal court on July 31, as mentioned in the Department of Justice’s press release regarding the superseding indictment. However, De Oliveira’s attorney, John Irving, declined to comment on the matter.

Last week, Judge Aileen Cannon set the trial date for May 20, 2024, striking a compromise between the DOJ’s request to expedite the trial in December and Trump’s wish to postpone it until after the 2024 election.

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Officials from the DOJ contend that the additions in the superseding indictment should not disrupt the court’s scheduling order. In a notice, Jack Smith, the special counsel leading the DOJ’s case, asserts that the new charges against Trump and Nauta should not broaden the scope of the unclassified discovery. Furthermore, Smith’s office pledges to promptly provide discovery pertaining to the obstruction charges and the new defendant.

There has been no immediate response from Trump’s attorney regarding these developments.

Despite the DOJ special counsel’s desire for a swift trial, criminal defense attorney White suggests that upcoming primaries or the election should not be of concern to the prosecutor.

“It’s an appropriate move,” White comments on the changes to the indictment. He argues that worrying about the election or the possibility of Trump pardoning himself is not a legitimate line of inquiry for a prosecutor.

Apart from the addition of a new defendant, White believes that the updates to the indictment are largely cosmetic. While the new charges could influence sentencing, they pale in comparison to the crux of the case, which revolves around detailed allegations of Trump conspiring to withhold documents and obstruct investigations. White notes that these allegations are crucial for weaving a compelling narrative, which can help sway the jury in the prosecution’s favor.

Overall, the inclusion of a new defendant and extra charges in the superseding indictment has the potential to significantly impact the trial against Trump and Nauta. With the trial date now possibly delayed, the case promises to involve further twists and turns in the coming months.

• classified documents
• Donald Trump
• Justice Department