Trump in pursuit of dismissal from classified documents case charges
3 Min Read
Trump's lawyers argue that he "made this decision while he was still in office," thus presidential immunity.
-
former President Donald Trump speaks at the National Religious Broadcasters convention at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP)
A federal court in the US was asked by lawyers of the former President and current front-runner for the 2024 elections, Donald Trump, to dismiss the charges of the illegal concealment of classified documents.
They argued that he is protected by presidential immunity. In a 20-page motion, lawyers for Trump argued that "President Trump made this decision while he was still in office. The alleged decision was an official act, and as such is subject to presidential immunity," the motion states.
Trump has already pleaded not guilty to the indictment in Florida brought forth by special counsel Jack Smith.
This came as a response to the Justice Department's decision not to pursue charges against President Joe Biden in connection to his alleged mishandling of classified records.
In a statement released earlier this month, Trump asserted, "The Biden Documents Case is 100 times different and more severe than mine. I did nothing wrong, and I cooperated far more. What Biden did is outrageously criminal."
Read more: After Iowa win, Trump heads to court for rape, defamation charges
"He had 50 years of documents, 50 times more than I had, and 'WILLFULLY RETAINED' them. I was covered by the Presidential Records Act, Secret Service was always around, and GSA delivered the documents. Deranged Jack Smith should drop this Case immediately," he continued.
Trump has already been denied immunity from prosecution on a different charge: conspiring to overturn the 2020 election. The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied his request, describing his claim as "unsupported by precedent, history or the text and structure of the Constitution."
The unanimous statement by the three judges in the panel said, "Former President Trump's stance would collapse our system of separated powers by placing the President beyond the reach of all three Branches," adding, "We cannot accept that the office of the Presidency places its former occupants above the law for all time thereafter."
A 'throwback' and a hideout
Trump reported back in August 2022 that his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida was being "raided" by FBI agents in what he called an act of "prosecutorial misconduct".
The National Archives said in February of the same year that it had recovered 15 boxes of documents from Trump's Florida estate, which The Washington Post reported included highly classified texts he had taken with him when he left Washington following his reelection defeat.
Read next: Trump pleads not guilty in trial over Capitol riots
The documents and mementos - which also included correspondence from ex-US President Barack Obama - should by law have been turned over at the end of Trump's presidency but instead ended up at his Mar-a-Lago resort.
The recovery of the boxes raised questions about Trump's adherence to presidential records laws enacted after the 1970s Watergate scandal that require Oval Office occupants to preserve records related to administration activity, but this also puts to question that of Joe Biden.
