Trump's lawyers urge appeals court to uphold dismissal of classified documents case
Lawyers for former President Donald Trump have urged a federal appeals court to uphold the dismissal of the classified documents case against him
WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawyers for former President Donald Trump have urged a federal appeals court to uphold the dismissal of the classified documents case against him, saying a judge was correct in ruling that the prosecutor who brought the charges was illegally appointed.
The case charging Trump with hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida had long been seen as legally perilous for the Republicans' White House nominee, but U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed it in July after concluding that special counsel Jack Smith's appointment to the job was unlawful.
The ruling brought an abrupt halt to the case, ensuring there would be no trial before the November presidential election. Another case brought by Smith, this one charging Trump with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election, was delayed by a Supreme Court opinion conferring broad immunity on former presidents.
Smith's team has appealed the documents decision, calling the ruling by Cannon, who was nominated for the bench by Trump, contrary to decades of precedent. If allowed to stand, prosecutors say, the ruling would call into question the legality of hundreds of appointments across the executive branch.
