A judge barred Donald Trump from publicizing sensitive evidence in the criminal case alleging that he conspired to undo his 2020 election loss, saying his presidential campaign doesn’t mean he should get special treatment.
“He’s a criminal defendant. He is going to have restrictions like every single other defendant,” U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan said Friday during a hearing where prosecutors sparred with Trump’s lawyers over how much information the former president and his legal team can access and potentially publicly expose, according to The Wall Street Journal.
“The existence of a political campaign is not going to have any impact on my decision,” Chutkan said. “I intend to keep politics out of this.”
“I’m not going to accept that,” she said. “I have seen no evidence that this is politically motivated.”
Friday’s hearing focused on rules for how evidence turned over to Trump, known as discovery, could be accessed and publicized.
Four hours after the hearing ended, she issued a five-page protective order. Such orders are commonplace in criminal cases and typically draw little attention.
In her order, Chutkan declined to grant prosecutors’ request for a broad order that would bar the defense from disclosing or disseminating any discovery evidence.
Judge tells Trump lawyers: 'Your client’s defense is supposed to happen in this courtroom, not on the Internet.' https://t.co/IGyxy4ACgg
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) August 12, 2023
She also rejected a request from Trump’s lawyers that they be allowed to share sensitive evidence, like grand jury transcripts and witness interviews, with consultants and volunteer attorneys. She instead limited disclosure to people Trump has formally employed to assist on the case, saying letting volunteer attorneys see sensitive evidence could lead to unauthorized disclosure of the materials.
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