OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
In a Monday court filing, special counsel Jack Smith said agreeing to delay former President Donald Trump’s trial for allegedly attempting to overturn the 2020 election results and upset the transfer of power would “deny the public its right to a speedy trial,” according to a report.
NBC News noted that Trump’s team has asked the court to delay the trial until 2026, though if he were to win the presidency next year, it’s not clear a trial would happen while he’s in office.
“In service of a proposed trial date in 2026 that would deny the public its right to a speedy trial, the defendant cites inapposite statistics and cases, overstates the amount of new and non-duplicative discovery, and exaggerates the challenge of reviewing it effectively,” wrote Smith’s team in response to Trump’s request to delay the trial until April of that year.
Smith has asked to begin jury selection in December ahead of a January 2024 trial date.
Smith’s team stated that Trump’s proposition is based on the assumption that legal professionals will review discovery material individually and manually, which diverges from current practices.
“The defendant’s proposed trial date, however, rests on the faulty assertion that it is necessary for a lawyer to conduct a page-by-page review of discovery for a defendant to receive a fair trial. But the defendant can, should, and apparently will adopt the benefits of electronic review to reduce the volume of material needed to be searched and manually reviewed,” wrote Smith’s team.
“In cases such as this one, the burden of reviewing discovery cannot be measured by page count alone, and comparisons to the height of the Washington Monument and the length of a Tolstoy novel are neither helpful nor insightful; in fact, comparisons such as those are a distraction from the issue at hand—which is determining what is required to prepare for trial,” the team added.
“To accomplish that, the discovery should instead be measured by its relevance, organization, accessibility, searchability, and reviewability. Here, the Government has organized and produced materials in a manner designed to ease and expedite the defendant’s review and search, which allows for trial to proceed as the Government has proposed,” the team said.
U.S. District Judge Tonya Chutkan is expected to set a trial date on Monday during a hearing on the matter.
Meanwhile, Trump on Monday announced when he would be surrendering to Fulton County, Ga., authorities after being indicted last week by District Attorney Fani Willis for allegedly trying to alter the outcome of the 2020 election in the Peach State.
“Can you believe it? I’ll be going to Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday to be ARRESTED by a Radical Left District Attorney, Fani Willis, who is overseeing one of the greatest Murder and Violent Crime DISASTERS in American History,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Monday evening. “In my case, the trip to Atlanta is not for “murder,” but for making a PERFECT PHONE CALL!”
Along with Trump, 18 others were indicted, including former lawyers, legal advisers, and campaign staff.
He then mocked the DA for seeking a $200,000 bond, which he attributed to Willis believing he is a “flight risk.”
“The failed District Attorney of Fulton County (Atlanta), Fani Willis, insisted on a $200,000 Bond from me. I assume, therefore, that she thought I was a ‘flight’ risk – I’d fly far away, maybe to Russia, Russia, Russia, share a gold-domed suite with Vladimir, never to be seen or heard from again,” he wrote in another post.
“Would I be able to take my very ‘understated’ airplane with the gold TRUMP affixed for all to see. Probably not, I’d be much better off flying commercial – I’m sure nobody would recognize me!” he added.
