Judge Aileen Cannon has set a date for the trial in the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump.
The Trump-appointed judge has signed a court order listing the trial as starting on 14 August of this year in Fort Pierce, Florida.
“This case is hereby set for a Criminal Jury Trial during the two-week period commencing August 14, 2023, or as soon thereafter as the case may be called,” the court order states.
“Any change of plea must be taken prior to 5:00 p.m. on the last business day before trial is scheduled to begin,” it adds.
The court order is likely to be challenged as motions are filed, including requests for the trial to be delayed.
“All pre-trial motions and motions in limine must be filed by July 24, 2023,” the court order states.
Scott MacFarlane of CBS News noted that “This timeline seems quite aspirational.. not likely to hold”.
Judge Cannon appears to have created what’s called a “rocket docket” seemingly in an attempt to push the trial through the judicial system. Most federal trials take as long as a year as both parties prepare for the proceedings, The Daily Beast noted.
Legal experts have previously indicated that Judge Cannon can be unpredictable and that she has ruled in favour of Mr Trump in the past after he appointed her shortly before leaving the White House.
While overseeing Mr Trump’s challenge to the raid of his Mar-a-Lago estate last year, she added more red tape, slowing down the FBI probe.
Former federal prosecutor Brandon Van Grack told The New York Times that the proposed trial date probably won’t stand as the discovery process of handing over classified evidence to the defence legal team hasn’t started yet.
But he said that the date “signals that the court is at least trying to do everything it can to move the case along and that it’s important that the case proceed quickly”.
“Even though it’s unlikely to hold, it’s at least a positive signal — positive in the sense that all parties and the public should want this case to proceed as quickly as possible,” he added.
As Mr Trump struggles to retain lawyers to represent him, it’s unclear if the defence wants the case to move quickly and for the case to be resolved ahead of the 2024 election or if there will be attempts to delay it until after the election.
But Mr Trump has for decades attempted to delay legal cases and this case is likely to be given the same treatment. If the trial goes beyond the election and Mr Trump is elected, he may theoretically attempt to pardon himself. He may also order his attorney general to drop the charges against him, The Times notes.
Following Mr Trump’s indictment in Miami, Special Counsel Jack Smith indicated that he wanted a speedy trial.
Judge Cannon wrote in the court order that the trial is set to be held at her home courthouse in Fort Pierce, a small town in the north of the Southern District of Florida.
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