The special prosecutor investigating the case against Donald Trump over his alleged illegal attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, Jack Smith, urged the judge on Monday to oppose the televised trial requested by the former president.
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Several media outlets requested permission in October to broadcast the criminal trial scheduled for March 4, 2024 in Washington, citing the unprecedented nature of the event. Judge Tanya Chutkan asked both parties to rule on this request for an exception to the federal trial rules.
Donald Trump’s defense team said last week that it supported that request, citing once again the legal prosecution of a “political opponent” by Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration.
“The prosecution wants to continue this travesty in the dark. “President Trump asks for light,” his lawyers wrote.
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The Republican primary favorite said during a caucus on Saturday that he wants “cameras in every inch of this court” to expose what he denounces as the use of the judiciary to eliminate him from the race for office. the White House in 2024.
The prosecutor accused the ex-president of “demanding special treatment” and argued in his response that the long-standing ban on broadcasting the proceedings was aimed precisely at ensuring “fair and orderly” federal proceedings, pointing in particular to the ” Risks of Witness Testimony.” Intimidation”.
“Rather, he wants to create a carnival atmosphere that he wants to use to distract from the allegations against him,” adds Jack Smith, using a phrase the judge used at a hearing two months ago.
Ms Chutkan had warned on August 11 that she would not allow the debates to take place in a media “carnival atmosphere”.
The prosecutor also recalls that Donald Trump “has consistently expressed his desire to postpone this trial or even to ensure that it does not take place at all.”