Judge grants Trump’s special master request

• A federal judge approved former President Trump’s request for a special master to review the documents seized from his home last month.
• The Justice Department had argued that such an appointment is unnecessary, partly because authorities had already completed their review of the documents.
• The appointment will likely slow down the investigation, but it’s still unclear whether it will significantly affect the final outcome.

Former President Donald Trump’s request for a special master to review the documents seized from his Mar-a-Lago home last month has been approved by a federal judge on Monday. The judge also directed the Justice Department to temporarily halt any further investigation of the records.

Trump’s court filing in late August sought the following demands: the appointment of a special master, a suspension of the review of seized materials until a special master is appointed, a more detailed inventory of the items seized, and the return of all items “not within the scope” of the search warrant.

According to Trump’s legal team, a special master or an outside legal expert was necessary to ensure an unbiased, independent review of records. They also argued that personal documents or information protected by attorney-client privilege or executive privilege should be filtered out and returned to Trump.

The Justice Department objected to such an appointment, partly because authorities had already completed their review of the documents.

The department argued that since Trump is no longer president, he is no longer entitled to the return of any presidential records that no longer belong to him. They added that any personal items recovered were mixed in with classified materials, which made them potential pieces of evidence in the investigation.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon has previously shown her predisposition to allow the appointment of a special master. During this month’s arguments, she asked a department lawyer, “What is the harm?”

It is still unclear whether the appointment will significantly affect the outcome of the investigation, but it will likely slow it down. Judge Cannon, who was nominated to the bench in 2020 by Trump, directed the department to temporarily halt any further investigation into the seized materials.

The U.S. intelligence community may still continue a risk assessment of the documents, however, per Cannon’s decision.

Source: Aol.com