A federal judge in Florida on Monday dismissed within the case concerning secret criminal documents against former President Donald Trump and stated that the appointment of special counsel Jack Smith as prosecutor on this case had violated the Appointments Clause of the US Constitution.
Trump was accused in that case of illegally retaining secret government documents after leaving the White House in January 2021 and attempting to withhold them from government officials who demanded their return.
The sensational ruling by Judge Aileen Cannon – who was appointed to the federal bench by Trump – comes two days after an assassin narrowly missed Trump during a campaign rally in western Pennsylvania. The ruling was handed down just hours before the beginning of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Trump will probably be officially confirmed because the Republican presidential nominee for the November election.
Smith's office can and almost definitely will appeal Cannon's ruling.
The query of the legality of his appointment will likely find yourself before the U.S. Supreme Court.
In her ruling, which granted Trump's motion to dismiss the case, Cannon concluded that Smith's appointment as special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland violated the Constitution's Appointments Clause, which states that “officers of the United States” should be appointed by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
It also ruled that Smith's use of “permanent, open-ended appropriations” – the funding of his prosecutor's office – violated that constitutional provision.
There are three other criminal proceedings pending against Trump.
In considered one of those cases, the Republican is accused in federal court in Washington, DC, of crimes related to his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.
Smith's office is bringing charges against Trump in Washington.
Cannon's ruling on the legality of Smith's appointment will not be binding on the judge within the case in Washington, but will certainly be cited by Trump's lawyers there in one other try to dismiss this election case.
In a state-level case in Georgia, Trump is accused of criminal activity in connection together with his attempts to overturn his 2020 election defeat.
And he’s awaiting sentencing in a New York state court after being convicted this 12 months of crimes related to a hush money payment made by his then-attorney to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016.
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