Key Things to Watch For During Trump Classified Documents Hearing

Former President Donald Trump attends UFC 290 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on July 8, 2023. Steve Marcus/Getty Images

U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon is scheduled to oversee a court hearing on Tuesday in Fort Pierce, Florida, pertaining to the classified documents case involving former President Donald Trump, with the outcome of this hearing holding significant weight as it could impact the 2024 presidential race.

Tuesday’s hearing, scheduled for 2 p.m. ET, is the first one that Judge Cannon, a Trump appointee, will preside over. Earlier court sessions in the case were held in Miami before federal magistrate judges following Mr. Trump’s indictment.

At his arraignment on June 13, Mr. Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 charges, including conspiring to obstruct justice and willful retention of national defense information.

The former president has described the case as political persecution meant to derail his bid for the White House in 2024.

The trial schedule is in particularly sharp focus as Tuesday’s hearing is set to get underway, as Mr. Trump’s attorneys have requested that the proceedings be delayed until after next year’s presidential contest.

The Department of Justice, by contrast, has asked for a speedy trial starting in December 2023, arguing that there’s “no basis” for Mr. Trump’s request to delay the proceedings.

Here are the key things to know about Tuesday’s hearing in Fort Pierce.

Trial Schedule

During Tuesday’s hearing, Judge Cannon is widely expected to weigh the request by Mr. Trump’s lawyers for a delay of the trial until after the presidential election.

In a motion (pdf) filed on July 10, Mr. Trump’s lawyers urged Judge Cannon to postpone the proceedings, arguing that a trial beginning within just months would deny them the reasonable time necessary for effective preparation and so make it impossible for Mr. Trump to get a fair trial before the election.

Mr. Trump’s trial was initially scheduled to begin in August but the DOJ in June asked Judge Cannon to start the trial on Dec. 11, 2023, in part in order to give Mr. Trump’s lawyers time to obtain the necessary security clearances they need to view the various classified documents in the case.

Prosecutors have also argued that starting the trial sooner would allow ample time to select a jury as that could be a protracted process in a high-profile trial such as the one involving Mr. Trump.

Judge Cannon’s decision regarding the trial schedule is perhaps the most consequential as siding with the DOJ would mean the trial will go into 2024 and almost certainly conflict with key dates on the presidential campaign calendar.

Agreeing to postpone the trial would mean freeing up Mr. Trump to campaign without impediment as a criminal case like this one—unlike several other civil cases facing the former president—generally requires Mr. Trump’s presence in court.

Mr. Trump is unlikely to be present at Tuesday’s pre-trial hearing as he is scheduled to be in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for a televised town hall with Fox News host Sean Hannity.

The former president can generally waive his appearance at pre-trial hearings, but experts say this will not be the case once the trial begins.

Trial Location

Another important decision facing Judge Cannon is where the trial will be held.

While it appears likely that the trial will be held at the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce on Florida’s Treasure Coast, there has been no explicit declaration as to the location.

Holding the trial in the sleepy town of around 50,000 residents could minimize disruption at other federal courthouses in Florida but potentially pose some logistical challenges if, for instance, there are demonstrations outside the courthouse.

It’s unclear what preferences both sides may have as to the location, but venue change requests are another item to watch for during Tuesday’s pre-trial hearing.

Classified Document Access

Another important aspect that Judge Cannon might weigh in on during Tuesday’s pre-trial hearing is what classified information will be used in court and how.

The classified documents case will be a jury trial that will be tried under the rules of the Classified Information Procedures Act (CIPA).

That statute governs how classified information is handled by the parties in a criminal trial, such as the one facing Mr. Trump. The provisions of CIPA are meant to balance a defendant’s right to access evidence that prosecutors intend to use in a case against the government’s interest in safeguarding sensitive information.

Ahead of the pretrial hearing, special counsel Jack Smith’s team asked Judge Cannon on Monday to enter a protective order that would restrict the ability of Mr. Trump’s defense lawyers to share classified information in the case with the former president and his co-defendant, Walt Nauta.

The proposal from Mr. Smith’s team includes preventing the defense from disclosing any classified national security information and documents in the case, including written and electronic information.

Prosecutors said in an order that defense lawyers have told them that “they intend to object to certain provisions of the proposed protective order, but did not specify any such provisions.”

The case began more than two years ago when the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requested Mr. Trump return certain documents, and NARA said it found documents marked “classified,” though Mr. Trump maintains he had declassified the materials as president.