The FBI raid on Donald Trump caused a huge stir as well as legal and political battles in the USA. Now the public is to see an essential procedural document. But how much will that reveal?
After the search of the property of ex-US President Donald Trump, the disclosure of parts of an important document in the process is eagerly awaited. A Florida judge on Thursday ordered the partial release of the affidavit that authorities used to obtain the warrant to search Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach. By Friday noon (local time) at the latest – according to German time Friday evening (6 p.m. CET) – the Ministry of Justice should therefore publish a partially blackened version of the papers.
Which the Justice Department has redacted
The search warrant has already been released. The document on the basis of which this was obtained would probably name the allegations against Trump even more specifically and also reveal possible witnesses. Shortly before the judge’s decision on Thursday, the ministry had therefore submitted a proposal to the judge to what extent the document should be blacked out to protect sensitive information. Judge Bruce Reinhart reacted unexpectedly quickly. In his order, he assessed the ministry’s proposal as appropriate, for example to protect the identity of witnesses or the integrity of the ongoing investigation. And this version is now to be made publicly available.
Several media had requested the publication of the documents. The Justice Department, however, argued that this could affect future investigations and the cooperation of witnesses. On the judge’s orders, the department finally drew up its proposal for redactions. It remains to be seen how extensive these are and how meaningful the document actually is.
What the FBI found
The FBI searched Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in early August. The background is the handling of the Republican with documents from his term as President. The FBI confiscated several sets of documents classified as top secret. Accordingly, the agents in Trump’s property found, among other things, a set of papers classified as “Top Secret/SCI”, which are top secret and may only be viewed in special government institutions. Four of the confiscated sets of documents were classified as “Top Secret”, three more as “Secret” and the remaining three as “Confidential”.
In view of the immense interest and great pressure on the Justice Department in the sensitive case, Department Chief Merrick Garland had initiated the publication of the search warrant and the receipt for the confiscated items. However, US media demanded the release of further procedural documents in court.
What Donald Trump says
Investigators searching the home of a former president is considered unprecedented in US history. The operation therefore caused a great stir. Trump sharply criticized the action and accused the government of his Democratic successor Joe Biden of abusing the FBI for political purposes. Trump has been fueling speculation for weeks that he could soon announce an application as a candidate for the next presidential election in just over two years. The Republican saw the search as an attempt to prevent him from running again as a presidential candidate in 2024.
Trump claims all documents were declassified, meaning the secrecy has been lifted. However, since he kept the records at his private estate, he may have broken the law. This is now being investigated.
Source: Stern
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