(NationRise.com) – Former president Donald Trump’s legal team blasted Jack Smith, the special counsel in the ongoing case against him, and demanded that he be sanctioned over his request for a gag order ahead of Memorial Day weekend.
The request came after a Truth Social post published by Trump. He derided agents who participated in the highly controversial 2022 FBI raid on his Mar-a-Lago estate and the “deadly force” authorization handed to those agents. He said it confirms that President Joe Biden is a real threat to Democracy while accusing him of being mentally unfit to serve as president. Smith was seeking a gag order to bar Trump from discussing FBI officials publicly.
Trump’s legal team called the request “bad-faith behavior.” Chris Kise, one of his lawyers, requested that every attorney involved in the request be held in civil contempt and face sanctions following an evidentiary hearing.
Aileen Cannon, a US district judge, shot down the request. She accused Smith of filing the motion “hastily” while stating that it completely lacked any substance. She also noted that Smith’s team disregarded professional courtesy since they didn’t first discuss the filing with Trump’s legal team.
The request came just days after Smith also asked Cannon to alter the conditions set for Trump’s release, which would bar him from making statements that some might perceive to be threatening to law enforcement or possibly putting them in danger. However, the actual definition of what would constitute a violation was left vague.
Trump is already facing a number of gag orders imposed during his ongoing “hush money” trail. He has consistently said that the orders violate his First Amendment right and put him at an unfair disadvantage as the 2024 presidential campaign season heats up. However, he has still faced fines reaching tens of thousands of dollars for allegedly violating existing gag orders. Juan Merchan, the far-left judge presiding over the case, has also threatened Trump with jail time for repeated violations. Meanwhile, according to Trump, the opponents he’s barred from discussing continue to bash him publicly.
Copyright 2024, NationRise.com
