President Trump is seeking the dismissal of a lawsuit accusing him of election interference and mishandling of classified files in Georgia.
Donald Trump faces two criminal charges against him after a US judge dismissed charges against the former president over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his handling of classified documents. I have experienced setbacks.
In Florida, U.S. District Judge Eileen Cannon on Thursday rejected Mr. Trump's attempt to sue for mishandling and destroying classified government files.
President Trump claims that U.S. law allows him to keep highly sensitive documents at his Mar-a-Lago mansion in Palm Beach, Florida, after he leaves office in 2021. Ta. He cited the Presidential Records Act, which allows former presidents to keep personal records unrelated to the president. their public responsibilities.
But prosecutors said he did not have the authority to keep classified information related to U.S. national security, even if the records were personal.
Separately on Thursday, the judge presiding over Georgia's election interference case rejected Mr. Trump's argument that the indictment sought to criminalize political speech protected by the First Amendment.
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right to free speech.
However, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee wrote in his ruling that the current pretrial stage requires that the language of the indictment be weighed in favor of the prosecution.
Georgia prosecutors have accused Trump and 18 others of participating in a conspiracy to “illegally alter the results” of the 2020 vote in the US state.
But McAfee said the charges do not suggest that Trump and the other defendants are being prosecuted simply because they made false statements, but rather that they intentionally and knowingly harmed the government. He wrote that this suggests that he acted intentionally to cause harm.
“Even core political speech that refers to matters of public interest does not render a person immune from prosecution if it is allegedly used to commit further criminal activity,” the judge said.
Thursday's decision marks the latest development in an ongoing effort by Trump and his legal team to contest two of the four criminal charges against him. It is related to his attempt to overturn the 2020 election results. He lost that race to current President Joe Biden.
Mr. Trump has maintained his innocence in all cases. He also accused prosecutors of conducting a politically motivated “witch hunt” aimed at derailing the 2024 election campaign.
Mr. Trump is the Republican presidential nominee and is expected to face Mr. Biden in the November election.
Criminal charges have failed to curtail support among President Trump's Make America Great Again (MAGA) base, but experts say a conviction is unlikely in any case. It said it could potentially affect his chances at the polls.
But it remains unclear whether a ruling will be reached before the election, and Trump's team is trying to delay much of the legal process.
Trials in any of the four lawsuits could have scheduling conflicts during the busy election campaign season.
Georgia decision
Thursday's ruling in Georgia mirrors an earlier ruling in the federal election interference case against President Trump brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith.
“It is well established that the First Amendment does not protect speech used as a means of committing a crime,” U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan wrote in December.
Georgia Judge McAfee wrote in his decision that even lawful acts involving speech protected by the First Amendment cannot be prosecuted under Georgia's anti-extortion law, which is cited in this case. He added that it can be used to support the
But McAfee left open the possibility that Trump and others could raise similar arguments “at an appropriate time after the factual record is established.”
Steve Sadow, Trump's lead attorney in Georgia, said in an email to The Associated Press that Trump and the other defendants “respectfully disagree with Judge McAfee's order and violate the First Amendment. We will continue to consider our options regarding this appeal.”
But he said it was important that McAfee made clear it could challenge it again later.
A spokeswoman for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis declined to comment to The Associated Press.