On Tuesday (August 30), the Department of Justice opposed the appointment of a “special master” to review the material seized from former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in its filing.
The DOJ elaborated on its opposition, saying the classified documents were likely concealed at the residence, violating a grand jury subpoena.
Prior to prosecutors obtaining the search warrant, Trump’s lawyers claimed the material was being stored in a secure room in Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.
Yet, the filing noted the records had possibly been “concealed and removed from the Storage Room and that efforts were likely taken to obstruct the government’s investigation.”
The filing also claims that “the government developed evidence that a search limited to the Storage Room would not have uncovered all the classified documents at the Premises.”
The DOJ’s Tuesday filing also revealed they found “twice as many documents with classification markings as the ‘diligent search'” in a matter of hours, something — the DOJ highlighted — Trump’s legal team and his representatives had weeks to do, calling into question their cooperation.
Revelations within the filing make it one of the most detailed accounts of the Mar-a-Lago search.
The department elaborated that the special master request fell short for “multiple, independent reasons,” noting that it was “unnecessary” and would “harm national security interests.”
The filing also reveals that Trump’s request “lack[s] standing” as the records belong to the United States and not Trump, adding that records covered by client-attorney privilege had already been separated by the department’s filter team.
They went on to claim a special master would “impede the government’s ongoing criminal investigation.”
