A federal judge in Florida, United States, has dismissed the classified documents case against former president Donald Trump on Monday.
The judge, Aileen Cannon, ruled in favour of Trump’s defence, arguing that Special Counsel Jack Smith, who filed the charges against Trump, was appointed illegally by the Justice Department.
The ruling can be appealed and might be overturned later, but for now, it brings an end to what was considered one of the most serious legal threats against Trump.
Judge Cannon wrote in her decision that the appointment of the special counsel violated the Constitution’s Appointments Clause because Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith without Congress’s approval.
Trump welcomed the dismissal on social media, calling it “just the first step” and urging that the other cases against him also be dropped. He referred to these cases as “Witch Hunts.”
The case involved allegations that Trump illegally kept classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after leaving the White House in 2021 and obstructed FBI efforts to retrieve them. Trump had denied any wrongdoing.
Smith’s legal team argued that the Justice Department had the authority to appoint and fund the special counsel, but Judge Cannon was not convinced enough by their argument.
The judge said, “Is there a statute in the United States Code that authorises the appointment of Special Counsel Smith to conduct this prosecution?
“After carefully studying this seminal issue, the answer is no.”
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