WASHINGTON — U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked a federal appeals court to overturn a decision to dismiss a case that accuses former President Donald Trump of mishandling secret documents at his Florida home after leaving the Oval Office.
The appeals process could take months, likely closing the door on any progress in the secret documents case against Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential candidate, before the November election.
Smith argued overdue Monday that District Judge Aileen Cannon’s decision to dismiss the case was based on a “flawed” argument that Smith was illegally appointed as special prosecutor.
Over 81 pages low In his lawsuit filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, Smith cited Watergate-era statutes and a Supreme Court ruling to argue that the time-tested legality of decisions by United States attorneys general to appoint and fund independent or special prosecutors is justified.
“In ruling otherwise, the district court departed from binding Supreme Court precedent, misinterpreted the statutes that authorized the appointment of a special prosecutor, and failed to give sufficient consideration to the Attorney General’s long history of appointing special prosecutors,” Smith wrote.
He further warned: “[t]The district court’s reasoning could threaten the long-standing operation of the Justice Department and call into question hundreds of appointments across the executive branch.”
Cannon, a federal judge for the Southern District of Florida, dismissed the case concerning secret documents against Trump on July 15 — two days after Trump he was injured in the attempted assassination in Pennsylvania and just before the Republican National Convention has begun in Wisconsin.
Cannon is a Trump appointee, nominated in 2020 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate later that year.
Trump argued in February to dismiss the case.
Days before he officially accepted the party’s presidential nomination, Trump praised Cannon’s resignation as a way to unite the country after the assassination attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Cannon argued that Smith’s appointment violated two clauses of the U.S. Constitution that govern how the presidential administration and Congress appoint and confirm “officers of the United States” as well as how taxpayer money can be used to pay their salaries and other expenses.
A few days later, Smith appealed the decision.
The Case of Secret Historical Documents
Smith’s historic case against Trump marked the first time a former U.S. president faced federal criminal charges.
A grand jury issued a 37-count indictment in June 2023 charging the former president and his assistant, Walt Nauta, with crimes related to the mishandling of secret documents after Trump’s term ended, including storing them at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. replacing the indictment Additional charges were filed, and just over a month later, another co-defendant was arrested.
The case of secret documents is just one of many legal complications for Trump, who has become convicted criminal in May in New York state court.
The former president still faces federal criminal charges for allegedly conspiring overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. That case also remained in limbo for months as Trump appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that the charges should be dropped on the basis of presidential criminal immunity.
In early July, the Supreme Court ruled that former presidents enjoy immunity from prosecution for official “fundamental constitutional acts” and sent the case back to a federal trial court in Washington.
Smith has until the end of August to assess how the immunity decision will affect the election challenge against Trump. A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Sept. 5.
