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The federal judge who has been assigned former President Donald Trump’s case involving charges stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol Building is getting some additional security.
The move comes after Trump publicly called for her to recuse herself from the case because he believes she will be politically biased against him.
Without providing many details, CNN reported that additional security was assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, adding that deputy U.S. Marshals have also discussed new security options for Chutkan on Monday.
The U.S. Marshal’s Service handles security for federal courts and the agency released a statement on Monday saying it “take[s] that responsibility very seriously.”
“Ensuring that judges can rule independently and free from harm or intimidation is paramount to the rule of law, and a fundamental mission of the USMS,” Marshals Service representative Drew Wade said.
“While we do not discuss our specific security measures, we continuously review the measures in place and take appropriate steps to ensure the integrity of the federal judicial process,” Wade added.
Trump took to his social media platform in recent days to complain about being indicted.
“Deranged Jack Smith is going before his number one draft pick, the Judge of his ‘dreams’ (WHO MUST BE RECUSED!), in an attempt to take away my FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS — This, despite the fact that he, the DOJ, and his many Thug prosecutors, are illegally leaking, everything and anything, to the Fake News Media!!!” Trump blared on his Truth Social platform.
On Sunday, Trump posted an all-caps message that read: “THERE IS NO WAY I CAN GET A FAIR TRIAL WITH THE JUDGE “ASSIGNED” TO THE RIDICULOUS FREEDOM OF SPEECH/FAIR ELECTIONS CASE. EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS, AND SO DOES SHE! WE WILL BE IMMEDIATELY ASKING FOR RECUSAL OF THIS JUDGE ON VERY POWERFUL GROUNDS, AND LIKEWISE FOR VENUE CHANGE, OUT IF [OF] D.C.”
John Lauro, one of Trump’s attorneys, addressed the issue of seeking a different judge, saying that Trump’s team has made “no final decision on that issue,” according to The Hill.
“It has to be really looked at with a fine-toothed comb. It raises a lot of issues,” he said.
Late last week, Smith’s team filed a request for a protective order in Chutkan’s courtroom to prevent Trump and his team from viewing certain evidence out of fear that the former president would disclose it on social media or during a campaign rally.
Chutkan on Friday gave Trump’s team until Monday to respond to the government’s motion. And on Saturday, she struck down a request by Trump to extend the filing deadline until later in the week.
The government’s “request pointed to a post by Trump on Truth Social from earlier in the day to argue that the former president has a habit of speaking publicly about the details of the various legal proceedings he’s facing,” CNN reported late Saturday.
“And in recent days, regarding this case, the defendant has issued multiple posts—either specifically or by implication—including the following, which the defendant posted just hours ago,” the special counsel’s office wrote in its motion which contained a screenshot of the Truth Social post from Trump that read: “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!”
CNN added:
After Chutkan on Saturday ordered Trump’s legal team to state its position on the motion by 5 p.m. ET Monday, lawyers for Trump requested more time to weigh in on what restrictions should be imposed. Trump’s lawyers asked to have until Thursday to respond, and suggested a hearing on the matter might be necessary if an agreement with prosecutors isn’t reached.
Smith’s team, however, urged Chutkan to stick to her original Monday deadline, arguing in a Saturday afternoon filing that the request from Trump’s legal team amounted to an “unnecessary delay.”
Smith’s team expressed its readiness to quickly produce discovery in the case, a crucial step to initiate the proceedings. However, the prosecutors wrote in a filing that the defendant “is standing in the way.”
