Judge Cannon grants Jack Smith’s motion to withhold classified materials from Trump defendants

United States District Judge Aileen Cannon on Tuesday handed special counsel Jack Smith a win in Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago classified documents case.

The Guardian's Hugo Lowell reports via X (formerly Twitter), "Just in: US Judge Cannon in the Trump classified docs case grants Special Counsel’s request to prevent co-defendants Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira from getting access to classified material produced in discovery. Bigger order on Trump yet to come."

The judge's order states, "The Court, following a careful review of the Motions and related filings, concludes that the Special Counsel has carried his burden to withhold from Defendants Nauta and De Oliveira personally all classified discovery produced to date. The Court makes this determination following colloquies with defense counsel concerning their theories of the case and anticipated defenses, and after a thorough review of the underlying classified materials with a view to Defendants’ interests."

READ MORE: Trump had 48,000 Mar-a-Lago guests near classified documents and only screened 6% of them

The order also provides three reasons Smith's motion was granted:

"First, as a threshold matter, the materials at issue implicate the government’s classified information and/or national security privilege. The Special Counsel 'supported each of its motions with detailed declarations from the relevant equity-holders explaining the specific information at issue, its classification status, and why its disclosure even to cleared counsel would damage national security.'"

"Second, the Special Counsel has made a sufficient showing that Defendant Nauta and De Oliveira’s personal review of the materials produced in classified discovery would not be “relevant and helpful” to their defense, within the meaning of CIPA [Classified Information Procedures Act]."

"Third, Defendants Nauta and De Oliveira fail to rebut the Special Counsel’s showing as to the subject materials’ lack of helpfulness," adding, "Defendants Nauta and De Oliveira still fail to provide any examples of documents produced in classified discovery that—if made available to them for personal review—would be helpful in countering the allegation that they conspired to help Defendant Trump 'keep classified documents he had taken with him from the White House' and 'hide and conceal them from a federal grand jury.'"

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Cannon's order comes one day after Smith alleged in a new court filing that "Trump did more than violate classified documents laws — he also tried to get his attorney to take part in his crimes."

The document read, "When presented with a grand jury subpoena demanding the return of the remaining documents bearing classification markings, Trump attempted to enlist his own attorney in the corrupt endeavor, suggesting that he falsely tell the FBI and grand jury that Trump did not have any documents, and suggesting that his attorney hide or destroy documents rather than produce them to the government."

Read the full order here.

READ MORE: Jack Smith: Trump 'attempted to enlist his own attorney' in concealing classified documents