Former President Donald Trump's first hearing in the charges related to classified documents found in his Florida home has been moved to July 18.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon made the decision and will hear the details of the case that could impact the 2024 election.
Donald Trump arrested: Judge approves delay on classified documents case hearing https://t.co/HCBqGdsdy2
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) July 12, 2023
"The date was established after a dispute on Monday in which special counsel Jack Smith implied Trump and his co-defendant Walt Nauta were attempting to impose an "unnecessary" delay by moving the date back from this coming Friday," the Washington Examiner reported.
"Nauta submitted a filing request to delay the hearing, citing that his main lawyer, Stanley Woodward, had prior obligations at a bench trial in Washington, D.C., this week," it added.
JUST IN: Trump and aide Walt Nauta's first pre-trial hearing delayed over defense attorney’s Jan. 6 conflict https://t.co/FjbXxXEUi7 pic.twitter.com/i5U2K9zIso
— The Messenger (@TheMessenger) July 11, 2023
"At issue is an initial pre-trial conference where Cannon, the federal prosecutors, and defense lawyers can start figuring out what's what in the handling of classified information central to the criminal charges in the case," the Messenger reported.
"The CIPA hearing, short for the Classified Information Protection Act, is expected to take place largely out of the public's view due to the sensitive nature of the underlying material," it added.
In addition to the hearing being delayed, Trump's legal team is seeking to delay the date of the court case indefinitely, hoping to extend the case until after the 2024 presidential election.
The lawyers argue that the case would have an unfair impact on the presidential run and the outcome of the 2024 election.
There will be strong pressure for the court to move forward with the case more quickly in an effort to have Trump in court during the primaries or even convicted of charges ahead of the election.
The drama continues to grow as the case develops with at least one date set in the timeline of the classified documents case.
