Trump pleads NOT GUILTY for the second time in 24 hours: Former president denies charges he tried to delete surveillance footage in classified documents investigation in court hearing without having to appear in person
- The plea came in a filing in federal court in Miami
- Trump already pleaded not guilty to charges in person
- On Thursday he pleaded not guilty to January 6 charges in Washington, D.C.
Former US president Donald Trump pleaded not guilty on Friday to the new charges filed against him for allegedly mishandling top secret government documents.
The move, made in a court filing, came just hours after Trump flew to Washington, D.C. to go before a federal judge, pleading not guilty to four counts related to his election overthrow effort.
The 77-year-old Trump was charged with three additional felonies in a superseding indictment handed down last week by special counsel Jack Smith.
In a written notice on Friday to the US district court in Florida handling the case, Trump pleaded not guilty to the new charges.
Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, also waived his right to be present at his August 10 arraignment on the new charges.
Former president Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to the new charges filed against him for allegedly mishandling top secret government documents. It came just hours after he appeared in federal court in D.C. to plead guilty to charges related to January 6
That frees up a bit of time in what is proving to be a busy late summer of court activity. In the D.C. case, his next hearing is set for August 28, although a magistrate judge indicated he might not have to show up in person.
Trump is scheduled to go on trial in Florida in May of next year for allegedly taking classified documents to his Mar-A-Lago estate and refusing to return them.
He pleaded not guilty in June to charges of unlawfully retaining national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice and making false statements.
The additional charges filed against Trump last week by Smith, the special counsel, relate to his alleged efforts to obstruct the FBI investigation and its bid to recover the classified documents.
Trump is accused in the latest indictment of attempting to delete security camera footage at Mar-A-Lago to prevent it from being provided to the FBI and a grand jury.
Trump placed his hands on a table as he waited for Magistrate Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya during Thursday’s hearing in D.C. He conferred with attorneys Todd Blanche and John Lauro as he waited
Also charged in the case are Trump’s longtime personal aide Waltine “Walt” Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, the Mar-A-Lago property manager.
The D.C. case could end up on a faster track. Lawyers for Trump and the government have already skirmished over Trump’s right to a ‘speedy trial,’ with Trump lawyer John Lauro warning about the ‘massive’ amount of evidence his team will have to review.
A quick trial could bring a verdict, on charges carrying years’ worth of jail time, before the 2024 Election Day.
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