Breaking
Trump Classified Documents Case Dismissed By Judge Cannon
Alison Durkee
Forbes Staff
Alison is a senior news reporter covering US politics and legal news.

Jul 15, 2024,10:04am EDT
Updated Jul 15, 2024, 11:01am EDT
Topline

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon formally dismissed the federal charges against former President Donald Trump for allegedly withholding White House documents on Monday, ruling Special Counsel Jack Smith was unlawfully appointed—the latest in a series of blows to criminal cases against the former president, Donald Trump

Cannon sided with Trump’s request to dismiss the charges against him under the Constitution’s Appointment Clause, as the ex-president claimed Smith’s appointment by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland violated the law.

Trump was indicted on 40 federal felony charges for allegedly withholding national security information by bringing White House documents—including classified materials—back to Mar-a-Lago with him, and for allegedly obstructing the government’s investigation into retrieving the documents.

The judge—a Trump appointee—ruled someone with Smith’s level of power should only have been appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

She also ruled Smith’s appointment violated the Constitution’s Appropriations Clause, because Congress had not appropriated funds to Smith’s investigations as required under federal law.

Cannon ordered the case to be closed, but noted in her order that the ruling does not affect any other legal proceedings—meaning it will not end the separate federal case against Trump for trying to overturn the 2020 election.

The Justice Department has not yet responded to a request for comment, and Trump said on Truth Social Monday the dismissal was a “first step,” calling for all the cases against him to be dismissed and to “to END all Weaponization of our Justice System.”

The DOJ can still appeal Cannon’s dismissal to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals—and to the Supreme Court after that, if necessary. Legal experts noted Monday the ruling could present an opportunity for prosecutors to request a new judge in the case if the appeals court allows it to move forward. Critics have long protested Cannon’s handling of the case, as the judge has pushed back deadlines and issued rulings favorable to Trump. Law professor Anthony Michael Kreis also raised the possibility that the DOJ could get the U.S. Attorney in Florida to take over the case and reindict Trump—rather than Smith—which wouldn’t present the same issues about the special counsel’s appointment. The case will inevitably be significantly delayed even if it does move forward on appeal, however—which means that if Trump wins the election, he could appoint DOJ officials who will drop the charges against him, dismissing the case even if the 11th Circuit overturned Cannon’s ruling.

Cannon’s ruling came after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas made the same argument in his concurrence to the court’s ruling granting Trump some immunity from criminal prosecution in his federal election case. Thomas used his concurrence to challenge Smith’s appointment, writing, “If there is no law establishing the office that the Special Counsel occupies, then he cannot proceed with this prosecution.” The justice claimed that the questions about Smith’s appointment “must be answered before this prosecution can proceed.”

How this will affect Trump’s federal election case. That case is expected to resume on Friday after the Supreme Court’s ruling on immunity, which found that Trump can’t be charged with anything that’s based on his official acts as president, but said it’s up to the lower court to determine which actions count as “official acts” and which are “unofficial acts” that can still be prosecuted. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who’s overseeing that case, has been much less deferential toward Trump in the past than Cannon, suggesting she would be less willing to throw out the charges. That being said, it remains to be seen how Cannon’s ruling could affect the case regardless, such as if Trump appeals any ruling by Chutkan upholding Smith’s appointment to the Supreme Court.

Cannon’s ruling is one of multiple recent setbacks in the four criminal cases against Trump. In addition to the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling throwing the federal election case into doubt, the high court’s decision could also affect Trump’s conviction in New York for falsifying business records. His sentencing in the case was delayed until September after Trump asked for the verdict to be thrown out because of the immunity ruling, arguing evidence was used in the trial that should have been barred. Trump’s criminal case in Georgia for trying to overturn the 2020 election has also been delayed as an appeals court considers whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified over a workplace relationship with prosecutor Nathan Wade. The appeals court won’t hold a hearing over the dispute until October.

Trump was indicted in the documents case in June 2023 after federal investigators searched Mar-a-Lago and recovered more than 11,000 White House documents, including more than 300 classified ones. Prosecutors alleged Trump knowingly concealed documents from the government, including moving documents so they wouldn’t be found by his own attorney after prosecutors subpoeaned him to turn over all remaining classified documents. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Cannon’s handling of the case raised scrutiny even before Trump was formally indicted, as she sided with the ex-president on a request to appoint a third-party special master to review the documents the government had seized from Mar-a-Lago—a ruling that was widely criticized by legal experts and was ultimately overturned. The judge had come under a new wave of scrutiny in recent months, as she indefinitely delayed the trial in the case—originally scheduled for May—after pushing back a series of deadlines, and took steps that legal experts questioned, such as allowing attorneys to craft proposed jury instructions based on an interpretation of federal law that legal experts have broadly said is incorrect.

ForbesTrump Scores Another Victory: Judge Delays Classified Documents Deadline-Again
By

ForbesMore Classified Documents Found At Mar-A-Lag

Alison Durkee is a senior reporter covering breaking news, with a focus on legal issues and U.S....

Y'all,
This is why we are always advocating to be conservative on your judgements about people.  Remember we are in a full on Military Operation to the likes that no one has ever witnessed before in history.
Those you think are bad may just surprise you and those you think are good may do the same.  This is why I personally reserve my judgement until the chips fall and all the smoke and mirrors have dissipated.  It behooves you to try to do the same instead of causing unnecessary stress, division and time wasted trying to figure things like this out.
Remember if we knew certain things, then so would the DS.  We have to be comfortable in knowing that some things, there will be a time and place for those truths to be revealed.  It's just not going to happen while we are at war, finishing the eradication of every last one of the pathetic losers that tried to steal our freedom, harm our children and mask the power we held within us by making us their slaves.
That time is coming my friends.  So hold that line and find contentment in what we do know to be true in our hearts.  Remember, you are an integral part of a time in history that will forever be remembered; because you had the courage to stand up and fight back!🙌
In the meantime Faith over Fear Always,
Kelly❤️
@CaptKylePatriots

I'm confused! Sheepdawg said the Atichrist would have blood on his head. So is Mike and them turning on Trump now? I hope that's not the case and they're taking buy outs now. A lot of things they've been saying lately have been very contradicting.

Think Project Looking Glass!!

D's Turn on Brandon!?