Special counsel challenges Trump classified documents case dismissal

 

Special counsel prosecutors have asked a federal appeals court to bring back the criminal case against Donald Trump over his retention of classified files, arguing the judge was mistaken in dismissing the charges.

Prosecutors argued that the US district judge Aileen Cannon was wrong to do so in July on the grounds that the special counsel, Jack Smith, was illegally appointed, maintaining that Cannon ignored previous rulings and misread at least four statutes that allowed his appointment.

Cannon’s grounds for dismissing the case rested on the fact that Smith had been brought in externally and was not a Senate-confirmed justice department official when he was named to lead the Trump cases. But prosecutors argued that this was a moot point, as the attorney general has the authority to appoint prosecutors under federal law.

What could this mean? The appeal to reinstate the case marks the beginning of what will likely be a drawn-out legal battle that could reach the US supreme court – expect a timeline of months, if not years.

-The Guardian