Donald Trump pretrial hearings begin Tuesday in Fort Pierce. Here's what we know.
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FORT PIERCE — Pretrial hearings for former President Donald Trump's criminal trial will take place Tuesday at the Alto Lee Adams Sr. Courthouse on U.S. 1 at Orange Avenue.
The 2 p.m. hearing will discuss how documents containing sensitive information would be handled and presented at trial. Trump and Waltine "Walt" Nauta's, a codefendant, lawyers are expected to attend the hearing.
This is the first hearing in the United States v. Donald Trump and Waltine Nauta trial.
Will Donald Trump appear in Fort Pierce for the hearing?
No. On Tuesday, Trump will be in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for a televised town hall with Fox News host Sean Hannity.
Trump may be able to waive his appearance at pretrial hearings, but not once the trial begins, according to Stuart criminal defense attorney Richard Kibbey.
It is unknown if Nauta will be present for the hearing.
What is Donald Trump on trial for?
Trump and Nauta were indicted on 37 and six counts, respectively, related to the mishandling of classified documents June 8 in Miami. Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges June 13.
Hundreds of documents taken from the White House were discovered Aug 8, 2022, at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach County during an FBI search. The FBI found boxes of documents throughout the property in bathrooms, ballrooms and storage rooms.
These are the 37 charges against Trump:
31 counts of willful retention of national defense information under the Espionage Act
One count of conspiracy to obstruct justice
One count of withholding a document or record
One count of corruptly concealing a document in a federal investigation
One count of concealing a document in a federal investigation
One count of scheming to conceal
One count of making false statements and representations for allegedly causing his lawyer to certify that all classified documents had been turned over to federal authorities on June 3
Who is Walt Nauta?
Nauta was a member of the U.S. Navy, stationed as a valet in the White House during Trump's presidency, who left that position to join the former president as a personal aide August 2021 at Mar-a-Lago.
The indictment said that he was known informally as Trump's "body man," or the person frequently at Trump's side to attend to his needs and requests.
When interviewed by the FBI in May 2022, Nauta made "false and misleading statements" regarding the location and movement of the boxes, the indictment said.
Nauta pleaded not guilty to the six counts July 6. These are the charges against Nauta:
One count of conspiracy to obstruct justice
One count of withholding a document or record
One count of corruptly concealing a document in a federal investigation
One count of corruptly concealing a document or record
One count of scheming to conceal
One count of making false statements and representations
What is in the indictment?
The 49-page indictment outlines the 37 charges against Trump and Nauta, as well as the topics of the documents recovered at Mar-a-Lago.
Documents included information regarding defense and weapon capabilities of the United States and foreign countries, U.S. nuclear programs and plans for retaliation in response to a foreign attack, according to the indictment.
Twice in 2021, according to the indictment, Trump showed classified documents at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., to people who didn't have security clearance. The documents included a plan of attack prepared for him by the Department of Defense and a map related to a military operation, according to the indictment.
When is Donald Trump's trial?
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was appointed by Trump in 2020, set the trial to begin Aug. 14. However, federal prosecutors asked for it to be moved to Dec. 11.
Trump and Nauta's attorneys say neither date allows enough time to prepare a defense against the 37-count indictment.
On July 10, Trump's defense attorneys asked Cannon delay rescheduling the trial or even considering future dates until they've had enough time to review all that led to the indictment.
In a 12-page filing, Trump's lawyers asked Cannon to postpone his trial indefinitely, citing the trial could impede Trump's 2024 presidential run and result in a "miscarriage of justice."
Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith opposed Donald Trump’s request for an indefinite delay in his criminal trial about classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, saying part of the former president’s request “borders on the frivolous.”
“There is no basis in law or fact for proceeding in such an indeterminate and open-ended fashion, and the defendants provide none,” wrote Assistant Special Counsel David Harbach.
Contributors: Melissa E. Holsman, Josh Meyer, Bart Jansen, Rachel Looker, Hannah Phillips and Antonio Fins.
Gianna Montesano is TCPalm’s trending reporter. You can contact her at gianna.montesano@tcpalm.com, 772-409-1429, or follow her on Twitter @gonthescene.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Donald Trump, Walt Nauta criminal trial hearing begins in Fort Pierce
