Donald Trump's lawyers disclosed in court documents that he possessed classified documents at Trump Tower, his estate in New Jersey, and at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida even before his inauguration in 2017. The specific contents of the documents remain undisclosed.
In previous court filings, the location of Trump's classified documents beyond the Florida resort had been redacted. The locations were disclosed in proposed jury instructions submitted by Trump's lawyers to U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon on Tuesday.
Trump's legal team has recommended that Cannon instruct the jury as follows: “You may consider evidence that government officials discussed classified information with President Trump and provided classified briefings and documents to President Trump before and during his Presidency, including inside President Trump's private offices and residences, such as at Bedminster, New Jersey, and Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, Florida, as well as at Trump Tower in New York City.”
They then proposed that the jury be informed that Trump possessed the legal authority to transform these documents from presidential records into his personal belongings.
The defense pointed to evidence of former Presidents, Vice Presidents, and other public officials having authorization to possess classified documents without being prosecuted criminally, even after they left their positions.
Chief prosecutor Jack Smith has criticized Judge Aileen Cannon for proposing that the jury could potentially consider Trump's possession of presidential records as personal belongings that he was entitled to retain after departing the White House.
Trump's assertion that he classified presidential files as personal items before leaving the White House is a central aspect of his defense strategy in the classified documents case.
