Trump’s defense attorneys, in conjunction with those of Walt Nauta, submitted a court brief last night arguing that Biden henchman Jack Smith improperly used two grand juries in different locations to gather evidence against them.
Here’s a breakdown of the argument from Bloomberg:
Lawyers for Donald Trump and Waltine “Walt” Nauta accused prosecutors of improperly using a Washington grand jury to gather evidence after they were charged in Florida with mishandling classified information and obstructing an investigation.
The former president and his personal aide were indicted in June by a South Florida grand jury. But much of the investigation unfolded in Washington in the months leading up to that. Special Counsel Jack Smith’s office said prosecutors continued to use a grand jury in the nation’s capital after securing the original indictment, before a Florida grand jury returned an expanded, superseding version on July 27.
Nauta’s lawyers, joined by Trump’s defense team, argued in a Thursday night court brief that using the panels in two locations was improper — and that it could affect the government’s ability to use evidence it added in the latest indictment. Smith’s office is due to file a response on Aug. 22.
Bloomberg seems to suggest this is a good strategy given the court’s previous rulings on the issue:
Although Trump’s lawyers signaled at an earlier hearing that they were looking into the government’s use of two grand juries, Cannon on her own ordered the parties to address the issue.
A long line of court rulings have held that prosecutors can’t go back to a grand jury to gather more evidence once they’ve brought an indictment. But there are exceptions if the government is investigating other crimes or potential defendants. A case also can’t be presented to a grand jury in a given location unless it’s where the alleged offense took place.
I don’t know what the legal outcome might be, but I suspect that if the judge ruled in favor of the Trump and Nauta defense teams it would invalidate evidence brought by the improper grand jury at the very least. That would seemingly be a solid win for both teams.