Donald Trump arrested: Five things we know from Miami courtroom transcript

[florida80]

6/23

More than a week after former President Donald Trump's arraignment in Miami, the court transcript obtained by the Washington Examiner sheds light on the "special condition" bond in the classified documents case.

Here are the top five revelations from the 36-page transcript from the June 13 arraignment in federal court.



Not one word spoken by Trump

Throughout Trump's time in Miami court on June 13, the primary speakers in the room were his attorneys Todd Blanche and Chris Kise, along with Magistrate Judge John Goodman and David Harbach, who works closely with special counsel Jack Smith investigating the former president. Trump did not speak once during the arraignment process in the courtroom.

Smith also did not utter one word, though he and Trump sat about 20 feet away from each other and did not exchange a single glance, according to the New York Times. Trump reportedly had a grim expression during the proceeding and spent most of the time with his arms folded.

The event marked the first time Trump came face to face with Smith, who has overseen the investigation that led to a 38-count indictment of Trump and his personal aide, Walt Nauta, who was present for the proceeding but did not enter a plea on June 13.

Arraignment lasted from 2:55 p.m. to 3:44 p.m.

While there is no standard length for arraignment proceedings, they typically are one of the shortest hearings in criminal cases. The judge reads the charges before a defendant enters their plea.

Trump's arrangement lasted nearly an hour, primarily due to minor disputes raised by Blanche and Kise, who were there to enter Trump's "not guilty" plea.

Judge considered letting DOJ split witnesses into two categories

One of the disputes began when Trump's counsel was informed their client would not be allowed to discuss the facts of the case with his co-defendant, Nauta, and other parties that the government has deemed "witnesses" in the case, according to the transcript for the arraignment before Goodman.

Blanche said, “One of the key witnesses that we know is still the president’s lawyer," adding that a "special condition that President Trump cannot communicate with his lawyer, obviously doesn’t work, respectfully, your honor."
The unidentified lawyer is likely Trump attorney Evan Corcoran, who was ordered by a federal judge to testify in March before a grand jury after the judge found the government had shown sufficient evidence to invoke a "crime fraud" exception, meaning he could not assert attorney-client privilege to avoid testifying about their discussions.

After hearing from the government's position, Goodman said he'd allow prosecutors discretion to put witnesses "on the no-contact list or not," citing the number of potential witnesses who might still be on staff for Trump's business properties or other roles in the former president's personal life.

But Blanche repeatedly asserted the condition was unnecessary. Goodman eventually settled on a single exception not to speak about the facts of the case with the witnesses, ordering the government to produce a key witness list for the defense.

On Wednesday, Smith began producing evidence in the case to Trump's legal team, including transcripts of witness testimony before the grand juries in Washington, D.C., and Florida that were investigating the mishandling of government documents from the Trump administration.

Most witnesses have their own "competent" counsel already: Blanche

In his argument that the court need not break witnesses into two categories, Blanche said it is his understanding that the people considered to be witnesses in the case, those with whom Trump interacts and speaks daily, "all have lawyers, and all have competent lawyers."

Goodman asked if it was true that "every single fact witness has their own lawyer?"

Blanche replied that "it's a broad group of individuals," not just people who work for Trump properties but those who "interact with him occasionally or that work with him on the campaign." He conceded that there could be an "unknown witness" who doesn't have a lawyer.

Nauta gets no-show pass for his June 27 arraignment: Judge

Because Nauta did not have a local attorney on hand to represent him, he was given an extension to offer his plea next Tuesday.

Goodman said that he would not need to appear in court again so long as his counsel is present.

Although Goodman was only the presiding judge and passed the case over to U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, Nauta's counsel will enter his plea before Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres.

It is not immediately clear if Nauta plans to appear in court next Tuesday personally.



On June 20, Cannon set an initial Aug. 14 trial date for Trump in Smith's case over his retention of classified documents.

The Washington Examiner contacted Nauta's counsel for a response.

Tags: Donald Trump, Classified Documents, News, Department of Justice, Jack Smith, Walt Nauta

Original Author: Kaelan Deese

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