Donald Trump arrived in Florida courthouse Monday for a closed-door hearing related to his handling of classified documents. Along with codefendants Walt Nauta (his former valet), Carlos De Oliveira, an Mar-a-Lago property manager and Walt Nauta himself pled not guilty in their cases against them.
Monday’s hearings will focus on whether prosecutors are entitled to withhold certain classified information from defendants during their trials, and are therefore closed proceedings that are not open for public viewing.
Trump Arrives in Fort Pierce
Former President George W. Bush arrived at a federal courthouse in Florida for a hearing Monday regarding allegations he hoarded highly classified records at his Mar-a-Lago estate and hindered efforts of the FBI to recover them. He faces numerous felony counts of keeping and hoarding such data for over 15 years without providing access to it when requested by authorities.
Due to the sensitive nature of the materials at issue in Fort Pierce’s hearing, aide Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos de Oliveira won’t be present as they lack security clearances to access files for viewing; their lawyers however will.
The judge kept pressuring Trump’s team to set dates and create a more tangible timetable for their case, acknowledging she understood it would take longer than usual to review documents and surveillance footage in preparation for trial. Their next scheduled hearing is May 9, wherein she will make a ruling as to whether the trial should proceed according to plan or be postponed until further notice.
Defense Attorneys Meet with Judge
Judge Aileen Cannon met with attorneys representing Donald Trump and two co-defendants to assess classified filings in their case. This meeting took place within a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility and was not open to the public.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys held discussions regarding various issues surrounding this case, such as how defense teams could access evidence that prosecutors wanted kept from them due to concerns of national security and privacy. A judge encouraged defense attorneys to set timelines for at least some steps leading up to trial, which will begin later this year.
Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, lawyers representing their defendant clients in this case, do not possess security clearance to review classified documents which have been withheld from them by prosecutors. A judge is expected to soon make his ruling regarding whether these lawyers can work on them securely – should that privilege be denied, this could delay proceedings and create more problems in this ongoing legal battle.
Nauta and De Oliveira Can’t Attend
Walt Nauta, former President Obama’s former aide and valet, and Carlos De Oliveira, Mar-a-Lago’s property manager will not attend Thursday’s hearing due to lacking security clearance to see files related to their investigation. Their attorneys, however, will attend.
De Oliveira, known as “Employee 4” in the superseding indictment, will be brought up for trial Tuesday on charges including conspiracy to obstruct justice and conceal an object. According to prosecutors’ latest indictment, De Oliveira attempted to convince another employee at the club to delete surveillance footage, denied having classified information in his possession and attempted to influence another employee to delete surveillance footage without authorization, among other behaviors.
At a hearing held July 19, Cannon warned Nauta of potential conflicts-of-interest issues should Stanley Woodward testify at trial about his interactions with Trump Employee 4 and Witness 1. She acknowledged this potential issue, advised Cannon to waive it for purposes of any appeal hearing, and allowed an attorney to represent Cannon in response to accusations of obstruction and obstructive conduct against him.
Kise Joins Trump’s Legal Team
After Rowley and Trusty left his team, Trump hired former Florida solicitor general Kise to defend Florida and New York civil business-fraud cases. Kise, an adviser for several GOP politicians including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Kise attended both University of Miami and Florida State University School of Law before being hired back onto Trump’s side as an advocate.
Kise is well known for zealously representing his clients in court. According to those familiar with his case, he often battles aggressively on behalf of them during civil business fraud trials, sometimes shouting loudly during them.
Kise was previously employed with Foley & Lardner of Miami until recently when he joined Continental PLLC, a boutique firm run by Lazaro Fields who describes himself as a conservative litigation strategist. A lawyer from Continental confirmed Kise’s representation in Trump’s Florida case but did not comment further – however it remains uncertain if Kise will accompany Trump into court during Tuesday’s hearing hearing.
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