Trump classified documents case dismissed by Florida judge; Special counsel to appeal

Trump's classified docs case dismissed by judge

Legal analyst William Jacobsen joins LiveNOW's Andrew Craft to give more insight into why former President Trump's classified documents case in Florida was dismissed.

A Judge has dismissed Donald Trump's classified documents case over concerns about the legality of special counsel's appointment.

Hours later, special counsel Jack Smith's office said it would appeal the order, which could result in it eventually being overturned by a higher court.

The Associated Press reported that U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon granted the defense motion to dismiss the case on Monday, voiding a prosecution that at the time was the most serious of the multiple legal threats the former president faced.

In a statement on his social media platform, Trump said that the dismissal "should be just the first step" and that the three other cases, which he called "Witch Hunts," should also be dismissed.

BREAKING: Judge dismisses Donald Trump's classified documents case

A federal judge dismissed Trump's classified documents case on Monday. Defense lawyers filed multiple challenges to the case. This hands the Republican former president another major legal victory as he heads to Wisconsin to speak at the Republican National Convention.

Defense lawyers filed multiple challenges to the case, including a legally technical one that asserted that special counsel Jack Smith had been illegally appointed under the Constitution's Appointments Clause because he was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland, rather than being confirmed by Congress, and that his office was improperly funded by the Justice Department.

The AP obtained a 93-page order written by Cannon granting a defense request to dismiss the case. Cannon wrote in part, "The Special Counsel’s position effectively usurps that important legislative authority, transferring it to a Head of Department, and in the process threatening the structural liberty inherent in the separation of powers."

FILE-Image of Donald Trump and classified documents.

"If the political branches wish to grant the Attorney General power to appoint Special Counsel Smith to investigate and prosecute this action with the full powers of a United States Attorney, there is a valid means by which to do so," Cannon added.

Trump lawyers contended that special counsel Jack Smith was appointed in violation of the Constitution's Appointments Clause and that his office was improperly funded by the Justice Department.

Smith's team challenged the argument during hearings before Cannon in June.

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What was Trump's classified documents case about?

The former president was charged out of Smith’s investigation into his retention of classified materials. Trump pleaded not guilty to all 37 felony charges from Smith’s probe, including willful retention of national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and false statements, FOX News reported.

He was also charged with an additional three counts as part of a superseding indictment out of the investigation — an additional count of willful retention of national defense information and two additional obstruction counts. He pleaded not guilty to those as well.

What other criminal cases is Trump facing?

As of this report, Trump is involved in a case out of Fulton County, Georgia, where he faces charges as well as 18 others, with participating in a scheme to illegally attempt to overturn the former president’s loss to President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.

The Republican presidential frontrunner is also involved in another criminal case in Washington, D.C., which charged him with allegedly conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Moreover, Trump was found guilty by a New York jury in late May of falsifying business records in an attempt to bury stories about extramarital affairs that arose during his 2016 presidential campaign.

Although he was convicted in the New York hush money trial, the sentencing has been postponed after a Supreme Court opinion that provided broad immunity for former presidents.

FOX News and the Associated Press contributed to this report. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.