Jack Smith wants Trump Jan 6 trial in early 2024 – Special counsel Jack Smith requested on Thursday that former President Donald Trump face trial on Jan. 2, 2024 in Washington, D.C., for charges alleging that he conspired to overturn the results of 2020 election.
Trump’s attorneys, John Lauro and Todd Blanche, could file a response before the parties meet in court on Friday at 10 a.m. to hash out terms of a protective order the government has sought over evidence in discovery.
Jack Smith (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool), Donald Trump (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
Jack Smith wants Trump Jan. 6 trial in early 2024
In Thursday’s 8-page motion, Smith proposed a timeline for the trial: By Sept. 25, the parties would need to provide their pre-trial defense motions in writing, any opposition would be filed by October 16 and within another week, replies would be due. A motions hearing would then be set, though Smith did not specify that date though he did scope out time for a series of additional motion hearings to follow, specifically those in limine. (These are motions requesting certain evidence be excluded.)
Those hearings would start no later than Nov. 13 if Smith’s proposed schedule held and would carry on through early December. Then, after a final pre-trial conference on Dec. 8, jury selection would start Dec. 11 and the trial would finally get underway just a matter of days before the third anniversary of the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“A Jan. 2 trial date would vindicate the public’s strong interest in a speedy trial— an interest guaranteed by the Constitution and federal law in all cases, but of particular significance here, where the defendant, a former president, is charged with conspiring to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election, obstruct the certification of the election results, and discount citizens’ legitimate votes,” prosecutors wrote.
Ultimately, the final decision on when the trial will be set is left to Judge Chutkan.
Since Trump’s indictment and his arraignment a week ago, the former president has called to slow proceedings before the case has even started to build momentum before U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan.
When entering his not guilty plea before a magistrate judge, his defense attorneys requested a delay right away, saying Trump did not have sufficient time to prepare and review the evidence.
“It is perplexing then, that the defense refused to accept the discovery that the government has ready, even on an interim basis under the government’s proposed protective order while the parties litigate the ultimate protective order in this case,” Smith wrote in his motion on Thursday. “In any event, although there is a large amount of discovery in this case— including witness interviews, grand jury transcripts, and evidence obtained through numerous sealed search warrants— the government has gone to great lengths to organize materials for the defendant to assist him in his review.”
Since entering his not guilty plea, Trump has taken to social media to discuss and frequently slam his indictment, the judge and the impending proceedings. Lauro has also hit the media circuit on Trump’s behalf.
It was Trump’s tirades on Truth Social that prompted special counsel to ask for a protective order over evidence in discovery and it was solidified with Lauro’s media appearances where he brought up former Vice President Mike Pence and suggested Pence would be a witness for the defense. Smith felt Trump’s language and Lauro’s conduct on Trump’s behalf was potentially intimidating to possible witnesses. Smith also expressed concern that Trump would be unable or unwilling to keep sensitive records private as the case ramps up or once presented to him. Those records could include photos and video evidence, grand jury materials containing personal identifying information, details about witnesses and more.
Trump has asked for more time to negotiate the protective order’s terms on at least two occasions since last week. He has also incorrectly claimed in the press and on social media that the court has placed a gag order on him. Neither the prosecutors nor the judge have requested a gag order and a gag order is also different from a protective order.
Prosecutors say they have already given Trump a “compilation of key evidence” specific to this indictment and have even identified what might be favorable for him.
If a protective order is in fact issued after the parties meet on Friday, then Smith said he thinks the government could have its production in discoverable materials “substantially complete” by Aug. 28. The government could continue to provide materials after that point on a rolling basis.
Once the protective order is issued, then Trump will receive witness interview recordings, transcripts, reports, the “vast majority of materials obtained through search warrants,” grand jury subpoenas, unredacted materials from the House Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol and the U.S. Secret Service and more.
While Trump or his attorneys may publicly claim that the government has had three years to prepare its case while giving Trump hardly any time at all, Smith pointedly noted: “Not only is this claim impossible, as Jan. 6, 2021 was only two-and-a-half years ago, but it is disingenuous.”
Trump and his counsel have “long been aware,” Smith wrote, of the details of the government’s investigation into Jan. 6.
“In sum, the defendant has a greater and more detailed understanding of the evidence supporting the charges against him at the outset of this criminal case than most defendants, and is ably advised by multiple attorneys, including some who have represented him in this matter for the last year,” Smith wrote.
Separate from this indictment, Trump is set to face trial in New York in 2024 for charges related to hush money payments he made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. That trial begins in March. He is slated to go to trial in Florida this May for charges related to his alleged willful retention of classified documents and other sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lag property. Also looming: Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is expected to seek more than a dozen indictments when she finally presents her case against the former president in Georgia. Her probe is expected to be wide ranging and could potentially include charges of racketeering and conspiracy involving Trump’s alleged attempt to overturn election results in that state, pressure officials and more.
When prosecutors meet with Trump’s lawyers on Friday, Trump will not be there, opting to waive his appearance instead. In addition to solving the protective order issue, Smith has asked Chutkan to carve out time on Friday to discuss how the parties will handle a small amount of classified materials found in evidence. Late Thursday, Judge Chutkan denied a request from Smith to file something under seal. It was not initially clear what that item could be but it is likely underlying the request for Friday’s classified materials sidebar.
New on the Trump Jan. 6 trial docket: The govt’s sealed motion regarding an item under seal is denied by Judge Chutkan. That could explain why record no. 24 on the docket appeared missing. https://t.co/iBQqOKiCbx pic.twitter.com/FmaE8Vv4LY
— Brandi Buchman (@Brandi_Buchman) August 10, 2023
Notably, Smith also asked the judge to consider a separate motion opposing Trump’s effort to toll time under the Speedy Trial Act. Trump’s attorneys sought to omit nearly a month from speedy trial calculations earlier this week but Smith says that would be inappropriate here because time is already being tolled due to the pending motions on the docket. Plus, Smith argues, if Trump wants to argue for the exclusion of time when the parties meet, that could be taken up by Chutkan when she seems them on Aug. 28.
Read the special counsel’s request to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan here.
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