DON AND DUSTED
Bombshell Trump win as classified docs case tossed after judge says special counsel Jack Smith appointment was unlawful
The ruling comes days after the former president survived an assassination attempt during a campaign rally
A FEDERAL judge has dismissed the criminal case against Donald Trump that accused him of mishandling classified documents.
The stunning ruling eliminates one of Trump's major legal challenges since leaving the Oval Office.
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Judge Aileen Cannon ruled on Monday that special counsel Jack Smith's appointment in the case violated the Constitution.
Trump, 78, faced up to 450 years in prison if convicted on all counts in the case.
Judge Cannon's ruling comes 48 hours after Trump survived an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
In her 93-page order, Cannon wrote because Smith was not appointed the role of special counsel by President or confirmed by the , his role in overviewing the case violated the appointments clause of the Constitution.
"Upon careful study of the foundational challenges raised in the Motion, the Court is convinced that Special Counsel's Smith's prosecution of this action breaches two structural cornerstones of our constitutional scheme," Cannon wrote in her ruling.
"The role of Congress in the appointment of constitutional officers, and the role of Congress in authorizing expenditures by law.
"The Framers gave Congress a pivotal role in the appointment of principal and inferior officers.
"The role cannot be usurped by the Executive Branch or diffused elsewhere - whether in this case or in another case, whether in times of heightened national need or not."
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During a four-hour hearing on June 21, 's defense team requested to dismiss the case in its entirety, arguing that Smith was improperly appointed to lead the investigation.
Trump's attorney, Emil Bove, argued that because Attorney General Merrick Garland repeatedly said Smith was acting independently, the special counsel should be considered a "principal officer."
Trump says 'I should be dead' in first interview since gunman tried to assassinate him at rally
A principal officer is defined as a top government official who has no immediate supervisor and whose appointment requires Senate approval, according to the appointments clause of the Constitution.
The defense's efforts to dismiss the case were considered far-fetched, as many special counsels operated similarly, including during Trump's time in the White House.
However, the arguments gained traction after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas endorsed the motion, writing a footnote in the higher court's immunity ruling on July 1.
Thomas wrote that there are "serious questions whether the Attorney General has violated that structure by creating an office of the Special Counsel that has not been established by law."
He added, "Those questions must be answered before this prosecution can proceed."
The Department of Justice will likely appeal the decision, which could send the issue to the .
'UNITING OUR NATION'
Trump praised Judge Cannon's decision, calling it the "first step to Uniting our Nation."
"As we move forward in Uniting our Nation after the horrific events on Saturday, this dismissal of the Lawless Indictment in Florida should be just the first step, followed quickly by the dismissal of ALL the Witch Hunts - The January 6th Hoax in Washington, D.C., the Manhattan D.A's Zombie Case, the New York A.G. Scam, Fake Claims about a woman I never met (a decades old photo in a line with her then husband does not count), and the Georgia 'Perfect' Phone Call charges," he wrote on his platform Truth Social.
Donald Trump's legal battles
Donald Trump is the first former US president to be convicted of a crime. He has been indicted four times in total and on May 30, was found guilty in his historic hush-money trial. He remains the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. The U.S. Sun breaks down the former president's current legal battles.
New York Business Records
- Trump was convicted in May of falsifying business records connected to $130,000 of hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
- The payment, which was executed by Trump's ex-attorney Michael Cohen, ensured an embarrassing story wasn't published in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election.
- Trump could now face up to four years in prison after the guilty verdict.
- He can only be pardoned by the governor of New York if he is convicted.
- The trial began on April 15. Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts on May 30.
Federal Classified Documents
- Trump is accused of mishandling classified documents after he left office and storing them at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
- He has also been accused of obstructing federal agents as they tried to reclaim the documents.
- Trump is further alleged to have shown the trove of files to people who were not supposed to see them.
- Trump faces a slew of charges, including allegations he violated the Espionage Act.
- Trump is also accused of engaging in a conspiracy to obstruct justice.
- He could face 100 years in prison if convicted.
- The case is not expected to go to trial before the November election.
- If Trump wins, he could either pardon himself or order the Department of Justice to drop the charges because the case was brought at the federal level.
Federal Election Subversion
- In August 2023, the Department of Justice indicted Trump over the events linked to the January 6 insurrection and organizing false slates of electors.
- Trump has been charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, conspiracy against rights, and obstruction of an attempt to obstruct an official proceeding.
- If convicted, Trump could get a maximum sentence of 55 years in prison.
- A trial date has not yet been decided, but the case is unlikely to go to trial before the November election.
- The Supreme Court is considering arguments surrounding whether Trump is immune from prosecution for some or all actions while in the White House.
Georgia Election Interference:
- Trump and 18 others have been accused of attempting to alter the outcome of the 2020 election in Georgia by pressuring local officials and election workers.
- The district attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, which includes Atlanta, indicted Trump on racketeering charges in August 2023.
- He turned himself into a Georgia jail and had his mugshot taken.
- A trial is not expected to take place before the November election.
- Trump cannot pardon himself if he's convicted because the charges were brought at the state level.
- In Georgia, only a board that is appointed by the governor can approve pardons.
"The Democrat Justice Department coordinated ALL these Political Attacks, which are an Election Interference conspiracy against Joe Biden's Political Opponent, ME.
"Let us come together to END all Weaponization of our Justice System, and Make America Great Again!"
FULL STEAM AHEAD
Trump, 78, was charged last year with illegally hoarding classified government documents after leaving in January 2021.
A federal raid on his Mar-a-Lago beach club in Palm Beach, , in August 2022 uncovered thousands of documents on the estate grounds.
Trump was charged with 40 counts of illegally retaining classified defense information and obstructing the government's efforts to retrieve the material.
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The former president is expected to officially be named the presidential nominee on Monday.
Trump told he will announce his vice president running mate during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.