The outgoing Supreme Court Justice in Washington DC makes a last-minute decision to turn over notes from Trump’s “document scandal” attorney Evan Corcoran to the Justice Department
A Washington DC judge overseeing several investigations into former US President Donald Trump has resigned from her role and turned over Trump’s attorney’s notes to the Justice Department.
Beryl Howell ended her seven-year tenure as chief justice in what could be a significant move on Friday, by delivering notes from Trump’s attorney, Evan Corcoran, to the department.
The Daily Beast called the deathblow a “parting gift” to Jack Smith, the special counsel appointed by the Justice Department to investigate both Trump’s handling of the Mar-a-Lago scandal with classified documents and his January 6 actions.
An analyst told the outlet that Howell’s move may have been because she was extremely concerned about the contents of Corcoran’s notes or because she feared they would not be turned over when requested.
Beryl Howell resigned Friday as Chief Justice of the US District Court for the District of Columbia after completing her seven-year term. She remains on the bench but has now been replaced as chief judge
“She took all legal aid out of their hands,” said David Cross, a senior federal trial attorney at Washington law firm Morrison & Foerster who is not involved in the Trump case.
“If she orders them to, they can appeal in an emergency.
“She may have been concerned about what she read in the documents. She may not have trusted them to obey orders.”
In a separate ruling Friday, Howell ordered Corcoran to return to testify before a grand jury again.
He testified in January but is believed to have used the excuse of legal privilege as a reason for not answering many questions.
Howell ruled on Friday that the government had reached the threshold for a special provision of the law known as the felony fraud exception, which allows prosecutors to lift the shield of attorney-client privilege if they have reason to believe that legal advice or services are related to been used in furtherance of a crime.
She remains at the court, but is no longer the chief judge.
This position is held by James Boasberg, also appointed by President Barack Obama.
The Chief Justice has sole discretion over sealed federal grand juries.
Evan Corcoran, one of Trump’s attorneys. Howell turned Corcoran’s notes over to the Justice Department on Friday
Jack Smith was appointed special prosecutor by the Justice Department in November, tasked with investigating Trump’s handling of classified documents and his actions around January 6. He might find Howell’s documents extremely useful
James Boasberg succeeds Howell as Chief Justice of the DC Court
That means Boasberg will immediately assume responsibility for addressing specific issues that may arise in the Special Counsel’s investigation into Trump.
Boasberg told NBC News he would not comment on any grand jury proceedings, instead praising his predecessor.
He said the court was happy to have had Howell at its helm “during this very tense time”.
He added: “She has guided the court through COVID and dislocation in a great way, and she has also maintained a very cohesive court that has not been driven by partisan divisions.”