(TheLastPatriotNews.com) – On Friday, United States Department of Justice Special Counsel Jack Smith requested a federal judge postpone former President Donald Trump’s trial, handing Trump a break as he will have more time to prepare his defense. The charges against Trump involve purposely keeping national security secrets and hindering justice.
Smith requested that US District Judge Aileen Cannon delay the trial nearly four months, shifting it from August 14th to December 11th. He argued that both the prosecution and the defense require additional time to prepare adequately.
According to Smith, Trump’s defense team, representing the former president, who is now 77 years old, does not disagree with rescheduling the trial.
Smith stressed that if the trial starts on August 14th, it “would deny counsel for the defendant or the attorney for the Government the reasonable time necessary for effective preparation.”
Another complication involves getting the necessary security clearances for Trump’s defense team so that they can review the evidence against him.
Smith pointed out that this case “does involve classified information and will necessitate defense counsel obtaining the requisite security clearances.” He noted that it might take up to 60 days for Trump’s defense team to gain clearance to view some highly sensitive evidence.
He added that allowing extra time for the defense team to scrutinize the evidence, decide on what to produce for the government, and then enable the government to review it is reasonable and suitable.
Smith has charged Trump with violating seven different federal laws. In total, Trump has pleaded not guilty to 37 separate charges.
If Trump receives the maximum penalty for each charge and the judge decides that the penalties should be served one after the other, Trump could be looking at a 400-year prison sentence and a fine of $9,250,000.
In addition to the delay, Smith requested Judge Cannon to prevent Trump and his co-defendant, Walt Nauta, from discussing the trial with any of the witnesses listed in the government’s case against them.
