Trump’s Lawyers Plead With Justice Department Not To Bring Charges In Document Inquiry

Lawyers representing former President Donald Trump met with Special Counsel Jack Smith and other officials from the Department of Justice on Monday.

The visit took place just as speculation is mounting that prosecutors are nearing the end of their inquiry into Trump’s classified documents case. Lawyers James Trusty, John Rowley and Lindsay Halligan declined to speak to reporters about the subject of the two-hour meeting.

Prosecutors are expected to question a new witness in the documents case in Florida later this week, following the appearance of one other witness before the grand jury.

They are also still looking into an incident that took place in October, in which a groundskeeper at Mar-a-Lago drained a pool and caused water damage in a room containing digital logs for the estate’s security cameras. Smith’s office has recently questioned whether or not Trump or his team intentionally damaged the logs in an effort to interfere with the government’s investigation into the documents by tampering with security footage.

In addition, the DOJ and special counsel have been looking into recorded audio notes made by a lawyer defending Trump, Evan Corcoran, which provide insight into a time last year when Corcoran was helping Trump after a subpoena seeking the return of classified documents. His clear account of the investigation during this time was given to Smith, who is currently studying the recorded discussions between Trump and his lawyer.

Shortly after Monday’s meeting, Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, and posted a message insinuating the possibility of his indictment.

“How can the DOJ possibly charge me, who did nothing wrong, when no other presidents were charged,” wrote Trump.

He also referenced a situation in which President Joe Biden was also found in possession of classified documents during his time as vice president.

This is not the first time that the former president has accused the DOJ of treating him unfairly. In a letter from Trump’s lawyers to Attorney General Merrick Garland that was posted on May 23, he broadly referenced his disapproval of the ways in which his case has been handled by the government. He accused officials of favoring Biden and his son, Hunter, who is also under criminal investigation.

Smith has not yet announced if and when charges will be made against Trump in the documents case, although signs of a decision are evident.

Article by Ava Lombardi