The legal team of United States’ former President Donald Trump has asked the federal judge to postpone his trial on charges of illegally retaining classified documents after he left office, said that the proceeding should not begin until all “substantive motions” in the case were resolved, as per reports.
The former president’s legal team, on Monday, argued in a court filing that no trial date should be set until all “substantive motions” in the case were resolved, setting up an early key decision by Judge Aileen M. Cannon. If granted, it could push Trump’s trial into the final stages of the presidential campaign in which he is now the Republican front-runner or even past the 2024 election. While timing is important in any criminal matter, it could be hugely consequential in Trump’s case, in which he stands accused of illegally holding on to 31 classified documents after leaving the White House and obstructing the government’s repeated efforts to reclaim them. Trump’s lawyers pitched their request to Judge Cannon as a plea for cautious deliberation and as a means of safeguarding democracy. “In one instance, American Media Inc. (“AMI”), paid USD 30,000 to a former Trump Tower doorman,” Attorney Alvin L. Bragg said in a statement. AMI admitted its conduct was unlawful in an agreement with federal prosecutors and made false entries in its business records concerning the true purpose of the USD 150,000 payment.
“In a third instance – 12 days before the presidential general election – the Special Counsel wired USD 130,000 to an attorney for an adult film actress. The Special Counsel, who has since pleaded guilty and served time in prison for making the illegal campaign contribution, made the payment through a shell corporation funded through a bank in Manhattan,” the statement read.
