Lawyers for former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants in the classified documents case are arguing that a potential trial date should continue to be pushed back.
In response to a request from the judge, Trump’s lawyers argued in court filing on Friday that despite the fact that a 70-day window to set a trial date will begin on May 20, Judge Aileen Cannon should hit pause to allow the defendants’ lawyers time to examine any further documents produced by prosecutors.
“Discovery remains far from complete in this case,” the lawyers wrote. “Defendants have sought countless additional records from the Special Counsel’s Office and have requested evidentiary and non-evidentiary hearings that may well result in the production of additional voluminous, and potentially classified, discovery.”
This delay would allow all parties more time to review and resolve the pretrial motions they’ve already filed to the judge, Trump’s lawyers argued.
“Time would also continue to be tolled under the Speedy Trial Act while the Court considers the numerous pretrial motions still pending,” the filing said.
In response to NBC News’ request for comment, a Trump campaign spokesman said the filing is consistent with Cannon’s assessment of how to decide the earliest date a trial could start.
“President Trump was responding to an order from Judge Cannon regarding the speedy trial clock. The filing simply stated that we agreed with the Court that no days had expired from the 70 days allowed under the law,” the Trump campaign spokesman said.
Cannon on Tuesday asked Trump’s lawyers to file that report by Friday and asked for it to “include Defendants’ positions on all excludable time from the speedy trial period and expressly indicate any Defendants’ current assertion or waiver of speedy trial rights, with associated timeframes.”
Critics of Trump and Cannon have argued that further delaying the trial would ensure this case isn’t resolved before the presidential general election later this year.
Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg said that Cannon’s Tuesday request makes it “even clearer” that the Mar-a-Lago documents case “was never going to trial before the election.”
Aronberg, a former Democratic state senator, added, “she has always given the defense the benefit of the doubt and great deference on scheduling.”
The classified documents case stems from charges filed against Trump; one of his aides, Walt Nauta; and a maintenance supervisor Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, Carlos de Oliveira.
Prosecutors allege that Trump stored classified documents at the resort after his presidency and charged him on counts that include the willful retention of national defense information, false statements and representations, conspiracy to obstruct justice, withholding a document or record and corruptly concealing a document. Trump, Nauta, and de Oliveira have pleaded not guilty.