Judge says he’s inclined to unseal part of Trump search warrant affidavit – IOTW Report

Judge says he’s inclined to unseal part of Trump search warrant affidavit

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The federal judge in Florida who approved the warrant for the FBI to search former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate says he is inclined to partially unseal the affidavit that prosecutors used to secure it.

At a court hearing in West Palm Beach, Fla., Thursday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart ordered the Justice Department to file a redacted version of the affidavit by next Thursday, and told prosecutors to be prepared to explain the rationale behind those redactions.

Multiple news organizations had asked Reinhart to unseal the affidavit detailing the probable cause on which the search warrant was based.

“The public interest could not be greater,” Chuck Tobin, a lawyer representing the media groups, argued in court Thursday.

Tobin called the FBI’s Aug. 8 search of Trump’s residence “one of the most significant events in the nation’s history.”

The Justice Department said its disclosure would compromise the ongoing investigation into Trump’s handling of classified materials.

Jay Bratt, DOJ counterintelligence chief, told Reinhart that releasing the affidavit could jeopardize several witnesses whose accounts were specific enough that they could be identified, and would harm prosecutors’ ability to interview additional witnesses.

Bratt also said that the affidavit contained “substantial grand jury information.”

The Justice Department’s investigation, he added, is still in its “early stages.”

The former president’s legal team was in court Thursday but did not offer any formal argument.

During the hearing, Reinhart ordered the unsealing of some procedural documents related to the affidavit, which the Justice Department did not oppose.

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16 Comments on Judge says he’s inclined to unseal part of Trump search warrant affidavit

  1. As soon as much ado becomes nothing again, the left will hatch another plot. They’ve lost all credibility to me it’s all fake news to bring Trump down as Liz would say.

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  2. Well, there isn’t much public interest, at least as cited by the voyeur media.

    The raid DID serve it’s purpose to take all “eyes” off the fraudulent “send all our money to China” Act.

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  3. “Jay Bratt, DOJ counterintelligence chief, told Reinhart that releasing the affidavit could jeopardize several witnesses whose accounts were specific enough that they could be identified…”

    I thought an accused person had the right to face his accusers?

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  4. Witnesses to what? A crime as defined by existing law? Or perhaps witnesses to where Trump might have stored legally possessed documents which incriminate the FBI and others?

    An unsealed but redacted affidavit has the same value as a sealed affidavit, but raises even more suspicions.

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