Judge Tanya Chutkan on Thursday denied former President Donald Trump’s request to delay until after the election the unsealing of court records and exhibits in the 2020 election interference case and said the court would release evidence submitted by the government on Friday.
In her five-page order, Chutkan said there was a presumption that there should be public access to “all facets of criminal court proceedings” and that Trump, in claiming the material should remain under seal, did not submit arguments relevant to any of the factors that would be considerations. Instead, Trump’s lawyers argued that keeping it under seal for another month “will serve other interests,” Chutkan wrote. “Ultimately, none of those arguments are persuasive.”
She had been tasked with deciding whether the appendix and brief submitted by special counsel Jack Smith earlier this month should be made available to the public, but with certain information kept secret. Chutkan allowed the brief to be made public last week, though it included redactions of names of alleged co-conspirators, campaign staff and White House officials, as well as certain references to grand jury proceedings.
Shortly after Trump lodged his opposition to any additional disclosures, Chutkan granted Smith’s request to file the appendix with his proposed redactions on the public docket. But she also granted Trump’s request to put her decision on hold for seven days while he explored his options for further litigation.
The special counsel indicated that much of the appendix contains sensitive materials that should be shielded from the public. That evidence, subject to a protective order issued at the start of the case last year, likely includes transcripts of testimony before a grand jury and FBI interviews.
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