Former United States President Donald Trump attended a closed-door hearing in relation to a Florida classified documents case that was held in a special secure facility on Monday.
The Republican businessman arrived at the courthouse with his motorcade at around 9:00 a.m. and was in the building for just over five hours. Trump then left the area as supporters blasted his campaign song "God Bless the USA" over loudspeakers.
The former president did not speak to the media or his supporters who were gathered at the courthouse. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon held two separate closed-door court sessions on Monday as part of the process that involves classified evidence related to Trump's federal classified documents case in Florida.
Authorities have accused the Republican businessman of retaining documents containing national security secrets at his Mar-a-Lago, Florida, home. It was after he left office and he is said to have obstructed the federal investigation into how the records in question wound up outside of the strict channels for handling such information, as per Politico.
Cannon, as part of the process, scheduled a four-and-a-half-hour hearing on Monday with Trump's legal team. There, they and lawyers for the former president's two co-defendants were expected to present the theories the defense may use at trial.
Trump's defense lawyers were expected to explain to the judge why they should be permitted to access various types of classified evidence that could support those defenses. The former president was not required to attend the Monday session but chose to join anyway.
This decision continues a recent trend on his part of showing up at court proceedings in an apparent effort to highlight his claims that he is being persecuted. It was also the first time that he would ever be face-to-face with Judge Cannon, who he nominated to the bench and was later confirmed after the 2020 election.
Trump's campaign also sent a message to allies with the subject line of "I'm in court. Again!" and issued a warning that unspecified opponents want the former president arrested and erased from the ballot, according to the Associated Press.
Classified Documents Case
The message reinforced his team's strategy of taking advantage of his four criminal prosecutions and politicizing them. These include the one in Florida, where he faces dozens of felony counts that accuse him of hoarding the highly classified documents and obstructing the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) efforts to get them back.
In scheduling the hearing in Florida, Judge Cannon wrote that the defense counsel shall be prepared to discuss their defense theories of the case. She noted that they will also discuss how any classified information might be relevant or helpful to the defense.
Following Trump's appearance at the closed-door hearing, special counsel Jack Smith's team presented arguments to Cannon outside the presence of Trump's attorneys. Lawyers for the former president and his two co-defendants will be back in court on Tuesday for a second day of hearings.
In an order that was issued on Monday, Judge Cannon said that the hearing on Tuesday will address the "classified information produced in classified discovery in the context of the 'relevant and helpful' standard," said ABC News.
