31-08-22, 07:43
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#32
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re: TRUMP STOLE Top SECRET Material & Special Master Ruling Won't Save Him
TRUMPS' Legal Battles:
Documents Likely Concealed at TRUMPS' Florida Home -Official
Former US President Donald Trump may have concealed documents during an FBI search of his property in June, Department of Justice officials say.
BBC News 31 AUG 2022
Apparent classified files on the floor of Trump's Mar-a-Lago office, released by the Department of Justice
In a court filing, the department said "efforts were likely taken to obstruct the government's investigation".
They alleged agents were "explicitly prohibited" from searching a storage room at Mr Trump's Mar-a-Lago mansion.
Other records were likely "concealed and removed" from a storage room, the officials said.
The 54-page filing was released on Tuesday, before a court hearing on Thursday.
In it, Justice Department counterintelligence chief, Jay Bratt, said the FBI were able to recover a number of classified documents that Mr Trump's team had not handed over, despite previous requests.
"That the FBI, in a matter of hours, recovered twice as many documents with classification markings as the 'diligent search' that the former president's counsel and other representatives had weeks to perform...casts doubt on the extent of cooperation in this matter," he said.
US presidents must transfer all of their documents and emails to a government agency called the National Archive - and the FBI is investigating whether Mr Trump improperly handled records by taking them from the White House to Mar-a-Lago after he left office in January 2021.
Mr Bratt added that the "commingling" of Mr Trump's personal items with classified documents is "relevant evidence of the statutory offenses under investigation".
Mr Trump has denied any wrongdoing and said the items were declassified.
He had been suing for a detailed list of exactly what was taken from his estate, and is asking for the government to return any item which was not in the scope of the search warrant.
But Mr Bratt said that any presidential records seized in the search warrant "belong to the United States, not to the former president".
Mr Trump's lawyers have asked that a "neutral" third-party attorney - known as a special master - be brought in to determine whether the seized files are covered by executive privilege, which allows presidents to keep certain communications under wraps.
Special masters are normally appointed in criminal cases where there are concerns that some evidence may be protected under attorney-client privilege, or other protections that could make it inadmissible in court.
The latest court filings made by the Department of Justice on Tuesday are in response to Trump's lawsuit.
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