Top-secret documents, 'reopening the case against Trump'. Prosecution appeals to the Court of Appeal
The July decision of the Florida judge (who was appointed at the time by the Trump administration) is disputed
2' min read
2' min read
US prosecutors are seeking to reopen the criminal case that accuses Donald Trump of mishandling classified documents and obstruction, arguing that the Florida judge erred in dismissing the indictment this summer.
Less than three months before US voters decide whether Trump should get a second term as president, special prosecutor Jack Smith's office has asked an appeals court to overturn US District Judge Aileen Cannon's July order. Prosecutors say Cannon erred in finding Smith's appointment unconstitutional.
Cannon, who was appointed to the federal court in South Florida by Trump in 2020, argued that Congress had clearly not given Attorney General Merrick Garland the authority to appoint Smith, which meant the entire prosecution was illegal. He also found that the use of federal funds to pay for Smith's work violated the US Constitution. "Cannon's contrary view conflicts with an otherwise unbroken course of decisions, including that of the Supreme Court, that the Attorney General has such authority, and is at odds with widespread and well-established appointment practices in the Justice Department and throughout the government," the prosecutors argued.
Smith's office records warned that Cannon's reasoning could call into question the legitimacy of hundreds of officials across the executive branch. His staff also argued that the judge failed to take into account the long history of special counsels and gave too much weight to how they had been appointed in the past.
"Any subtle and non-semantic differences between a special counsel, special prosecutor, special counsel, and special assistant to the Attorney General have no bearing on whether Congress has given the Attorney General the power to make such appointments," the prosecutors wrote.
