By Ola Babatunde
45th President Donald J. Trump has been charged with a 37-count indictment from the special counsel's office relating to the mishandling of classified documents. On a positive note for the former president, the judge presiding over the case is one that Trump had appointed to the federal bench.
The judge assigned to the case is listed as United States District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was appointed to the federal bench by Trump in 2020. It remains unclear if Cannon will preside on the case for its entirety. In the past, she had ruled in Trump's favor regarding his request to appoint a special master to review the documents that were seized at Mar-a-Lago in August 2022 by the FBI.
Trump had received 37 counts from the Federal Courthouse of Miami. Reportedly, he is facing 31 counts of willful retention of National Defense Information, a violation of the Espionage Act, one count of Conspiracy to Obstruct Justice, one count of Withholding a Document or Record, one count of Corruptly Concealing a Document or Record, one count of Concealing a Document in a Federal Investigation, one count of Scheme to Conceal and one count of False Statements and Representations.
Special Counsel Jack Smith, who held a press conference on Friday, stated that he will seek a speedy trial.
The main lawyer representing Trump is Todd Blanche. Blanche and Trump worked together during a separate prosecution in New York. The two lawyers who had been working on the classified documents case for months, John Rowley and James Trusty, were not named as members of Trump's legal team.
"Now that the case has been filed in Miami, this is a logical moment for us to step aside and let others carry the cases through to completion," a statement the pair released read.
The former president is due in court on Tuesday, June 13th in Miami, Florida.
Trump blasted the latest indictment as a "WITCH HUNT" and firmly maintained that he is innocent. Additionally, the Republican noted he has and continues to still receive unfair treatment. Lastly, he pointed out the fact that Joe Biden and other government officials have not been charged for similar actions.