Global Courant
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – US special counsel Jack Smith on Friday asked a federal judge to delay the start of the trial of former President Donald Trump on charges of willful preservation of secret government documents and obstruction of justice until December 11, it emerged from a report.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon set a first trial date for August 14.
But Smith said in the filing that the Aug. 14 date “would deny the defendant’s counsel or the government’s attorney the reasonable time necessary for effective preparation.”
Trump, who is seeking the Republican nomination for president in the 2024 election, was indicted last week in federal court in Miami, where he pleaded not guilty to charges that he improperly retained national security documents when he left office and lied to officials trying to reinstate them.
(Reporting by Eric Beech; editing by Dan Whitcomb and Sandra Maler)
