Trump's Trials - Still unclear when classified documents case will go to trial

Episode Date: March 1, 2024

For this episode of Trump's Trials, NPR's Alisa Chang speaks with correspondent Greg Allen.Judge Aileen Cannon held a pre-trial hearing in the Florida classified documents case where former President Donald Trump is facing 40 criminal charges. One of the top issues facing Judge Cannon is confirming the start date, but Friday's hearing ended with no clear answer to when this case might go to trial.Topics include:- Political calendar vs legal calendar - Timeline with other criminal trials- Trump in attendance Follow the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify for new episodes each Saturday.Sign up for sponsor-free episodes and support NPR's political journalism at plus.npr.org/trumpstrials.Email the show at [e-mail] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's Trump's Trials from NPR. I'm Scott Detrow. This is a persecution. He actually just stormed out of the courtroom. Innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. It's Trump's Trials from NPR. I'm Scott Detrow. And we're here with some news out of one of the many cases facing former President Trump. Keep an eye out for episodes like this whenever news breaks or whenever we have new insights to share. And we'll be back with more in our usual Big Picture episode on Saturday. age, cellular function declines, which may impact changes in energy and strength.

Solgar Cellular Nutrition is a holistic collection of cellular nutrients formulated to help fight cellular decline and promote cell health. Learn more at cellularnutrition.solgar.com. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. You're listening to Trump's Trials. I'm Scott Detrow. And now here's Elsa Chang. Former President Trump's trial in Florida on charges of withholding classified documents could start as soon as this summer. A federal district court heard arguments today about when the trial will begin. Prosecutors want it to start in July. Meanwhile, Trump's lawyers are asking to postpone it until next year, after the presidential election. NPR's Greg Allen was in the courtroom today and joins us now from Fort Pierce, Florida.

Hey, Greg. Hi, Alyssa. So I thought the Florida trial was supposed to start in May. Why is it being pushed back? Well, this case has moved much more slowly than many people thought. Even U.S. District Judge Eileen Cannon seems to not expect it to go this slowly. But much of that has to do with Trump's defense. The former president's lawyers have sought access to a lot of classified material, leading to a lot of motions filed under sea and a closed two-day

hearing. In addition, Trump's lawyers have filed at least a dozen motions asking Judge Cannon to dismiss the case. He and his two co-defendants faced some 40 criminal counts. Trump's lawyers have filed at least a dozen motions asking Judge Cannon to dismiss the case. He and his two co-defendants face some 40 criminal counts. Trump's lawyers today argue the government case against him is politically motivated. They want Judge Cannon to hold a hearing and to force the government to produce evidence of what they say is a selective and vindictive prosecution. Prosecutors say there's any evidence like that, and they say it would be unprecedented for Judge Cannon to grant them a hearing. Well, if the trial begins in the summer, as prosecutors want, could it all be finished before the election, you think? Well, possibly. Defense lawyer Todd Blanch said today he thinks a trial would take four to five weeks, not including jury selection. Trump has asked Judge Cannon for an August trial date, but his lawyers also said they think the

trial should really be put off until next year, well after the presidential election. Is the timing of this trial at all affected by the three other criminal trials that Trump is facing? What do you sense? Well, there's a lot of discussion in court today about that, and especially about the criminal trial Trump's facing for allegedly being involved in making hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. That trial is slated to start later this month in New York. Trump and one of his lawyers in this case will have to be at that trial for those six weeks. They told Judge

Cannon it's going to take them at least six weeks for that trial. And Judge Cannon hasn't ruled yet on how that will affect this trial or when this trial will start. But clearly she's going to have to take that New York trial into account in doing this. Yeah. Well, I know that another issue that's come up in the Mar-a-Lago case is whether potential witnesses will be identified. Did the judge at all talk about that? Well, yes. Judge Cannon surprised many legal experts last month when she said that witness names could be made public in some of the filings here. Prosecutors objected, saying that the court had, quote, made a clear error by doing that. Judge Cannon today seemed a little stung by that criticism. She said in court, quote, the court takes matters of openness quite seriously.

Prosecutors said revealing the names of potential witnesses, though, could expose them to threats and harassment. And that's already happened in this case. Last year, after FBI agents executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago, prosecutors say some of the agents were threatened and harassed. Well, also, I understand that both special counsel Jack Smith and Donald Trump were in the courtroom today. Was there any interaction between them? No, not that I saw. Jack Smith sat behind his prosecutors quietly observing the proceedings. Trump was subdued. He sat at the defense table and chatted with his attorneys as the long hearing went on. He left the courthouse without making any comments, though. It was really

a much different Donald Trump than we saw in his recent New York trials. So interesting. That is NPR's Greg Allen in Fort Pierce, Florida. Thank you so much, Greg. You're welcome. Thanks for listening to Trump's Trials from NPR. Keep an eye out for more episodes like this whenever big news happens. And we'll be back later this week with our regular show on Saturday. I'm Scott Detrow. Thank you. Concur solutions. You'll be ready to take on whatever the market throws at you next. Learn more at Concur.com. Dune Part 2 is this year's first big movie. It's an epic space opera that delivers plenty of spaceships and big explosions like any good sci-fi blockbuster should, but it also tackles themes of rebellion, religion, and the use and abuse of political power. That's a lot to chew on, so listen to NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast.

That's a lot to chew on, so listen to NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast. At a time when information continues to come at us faster and faster, sometimes you need to hit pause and rewind. NPR's Dueline takes you back in time to the source of the news stories filling your feed. Find NPR's Dueline wherever you get your podcasts.