Jack Smith Has Few Options in Trump Case, Say Former Prosecutors

(Left) Special Counsel Jack Smith delivers remarks in Washington on Aug. 1, 2023. (Right) Former President Donald Trump attends his trial in New York State Supreme Court in New York City on Dec. 7, 2023. (Drew Angerer, David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)

A federal judge’s ruling this week that postponed former President Donald Trump’s classified documents case represents a significant legal win for the former president, legal analysts say.

A former federal prosecutor, Renato Mariotti, wrote that there is virtually “nothing” special counsel Jack Smith can do to speed the process up.

“Realistically there is nothing Jack Smith can do to move the Mar-a-Lago case forward to trial before the election. Judges have extremely broad discretion over their trial calendar, which is what gives Judge Cannon the ability to avoid setting a trial date at this time,” Mr. Mariotti wrote on social media.

Another former federal prosecutor, Brandon Van Grack, wrote that Mr. Smith’s team will have “a bumpy ride” ahead of them because of Judge Cannon’s “numerous other scheduled hearings on pretrial motions” from President Trump and two co-defendants, which he indicates that Judge Cannon believes “have merit.”

Harry P. Litman, a law professor and a former U.S. attorney, echoed those claims, saying that the case is now in a “deep freeze” after the latest order.

Meanwhile, multiple television legal analysts claimed that with her latest order, Judge Cannon is intentionally trying to delay the case. The Epoch Times contacted the court for comment.

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“This is news but it’s hardly unexpected. Judge Cannon seems desperate to avoid trying this case. This isn’t justice. defendants aren’t the only ones with speedy trial act rights, we the people have them too,” wrote former federal prosecutor Joyce Vance, who currently works for MSNBC, on Tuesday afternoon.

But Tim Fitton, the head of the Judicial Watch legal group, wrote that complaints about Judge Cannon’s decisions are unwarranted, arguing that such a timeline “is normal and not surprising.”

“But the Left’s election riggers and civil rights abusers believe that Trump has no rights and will attack Judge Cannon for proceeding normally in this case and for not violating Trump’s constitutional rights,” he wrote on X, formerly known Twitter.

In that post, he pointed out that Mr. Smith’s team last week submitted court papers to Judge Cannon essentially saying that his team misled the court because the contents of a box of documents were re-arranged. Prosecutors did not disclose the exact reason why the materials may have been shifted.

“There are some boxes where the order of items within that box is not the same as in the associated scans,” Mr. Smith’s team wrote, adding that the update contrasts with what they told the judge several weeks ago during a hearing.

The boxes in question have “items smaller than standard paper such as index cards, books, and stationary, which shift easily when the boxes are carried, especially because many of the boxes are not full,” they added.

After the disclosure, President Trump wrote his Truth Social platform that he believes Mr. Smith should be arrested before calling for the case to be immediately dropped.

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Judge Cannon has denied two bids by President Trump to dismiss the charges. She has signaled that President Trump’s arguments that the documents were personal records may be relevant to how she instructs the jury at a future trial, a decision that could lead to an appeal by prosecutors and more delays.

In the meantime, there has been speculation that the classified documents case will not go to trial before the 2024 election. If it does, it would likely be in the weeks immediately before Nov. 5, an outcome sure to draw accusations of election interference from President Trump’s legal team.

“Any judge would take pause with the idea of trying a presidential candidate a month before the presidential election,” said attorney Kel McClanahan, who specializes in national security issues and has represented members of the intelligence community.

A Trump win in November could mean that neither case ever reaches a jury. As president, President Trump could direct the Department of Justice to drop the federal charges or seek to pardon himself.

The charges in the Florida case include violations of the Espionage Act, which criminalizes the unauthorized possession of national defense information, as well as conspiracy to obstruct justice and making false statements to investigators.

Walt Nauta, valet to former President Donald Trump and a co-defendant in federal charges filed against Mr. Trump, is seen at the James Lawrence King Federal Justice Building in Miami on July 6, 2023. (Alon Skuy/Getty Images)(Photo by Alon Skuy/Getty Images)

President Trump has pleaded not guilty to 40 charges connected to allegations that he illegally retained classified documents at his home after leaving in January 2021 and obstructed officials’ attempts to retrieve them. Two of his aides, Walt Nauta and Carlos de Oliveira, have also been charged in the case.

He also faces charges in New York, where a trial is currently ongoing in which he is accused of falsifying business records during the 2016 election. Election interference charges were also filed in Fulton County, Georgia, and Washington.

He’s pleaded not guilty to those charges, too, arguing they’re part of an orchestrated plot to imperil his 2024 reelection chances.

Reuters contributed to this report.