A case against former US President Donald Trump, alleging that he mishandled classified documents in violation of the Espionage Act, has been dismissed by US District Judge Aileen Cannon in Florida.
Cannon, who was herself appointed to the court by Trump when he was president in 2020, issued her 93-page ruling on Monday, the same day Trump was confirmed as the Republican presidential candidate at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee and announced his running mate for US vice president, JD Vance.
The judge ruled that the appointment of Jack Smith as special counsel for the case was done improperly.
“This dismissal of the Lawless Indictment in Florida should be just the first step, followed quickly by the dismissal of ALL the Witch Hunts,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, from Milwaukee.
The Department of Justice (DOJ), which filed the case in November 2022, said it would appeal the decision.
This was the first-ever federal criminal case brought against a former US President.
What did the Florida case allege?
The criminal case included 31 counts of “willful retention of national defense information”, each punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
The US Espionage Act criminalises the unauthorised possession of national defence information, as well as conspiring to obstruct justice and making false statements to investigators.
In particular, prosecutors alleged that Trump had removed top secret documents from the White House when he left the presidential office in 2021. They say he then stored these documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
Trump aide Walt Nauta was also charged with mishandling classified documents.
How has the case unfolded so far?
The case began in 2021, shortly after Trump left office in January. According to the indictment, the National Archives and Records Administration attempted to retrieve classified documents it believed the former president still had in his possession.
But Trump and his allies allegedly refused to return the documents, instead attempting to conceal them in unsecured locations at his Mar-a-Lago estate, including in a bathroom and shower area.
In March 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened a criminal investigation into the matter, and a grand jury subpoenaed Trump to return all the classified records.
The government ultimately recovered more than 300 classified documents from Mar-a-Lago, where dozens of public events had by then taken place.
In November 2022, US Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith as special counsel for the classified documents case.
In June 2023, Trump appeared in federal court in Florida when his attorneys entered a plea of not guilty to the charges of mishandling classified documents.
Why was the case dismissed?
Judge Cannon has dismissed the case on the grounds that the appointment of Smith as special counsel was unlawful. The issue had been raised by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who argued that Garland had no right to appoint Smith as special counsel to investigate Trump because the appointment of senior DOJ officials and US attorneys should be done by the president and requires confirmation by the Senate.
“Even if the Special Counsel has a valid office, questions remain as to whether the Attorney General filled that office in compliance with the Appointments Clause,” Thomas wrote.
Cannon agreed. “The bottom line is this: The Appointments Clause is a critical constitutional restriction stemming from the separation of powers, and it gives to Congress a considered role in determining the propriety of vesting appointment power for inferior officers,” she wrote in her ruling.
The ruling is based on technical legal grounds. The merits of the case itself have not been considered.
The decision to dismiss the case has been strongly criticised by Democrats.
“This breathtakingly misguided ruling flies in the face of long-accepted practice and repetitive judicial precedence,” US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement on Monday. “It is wrong on the law and must be appealed immediately. This is further evidence that Judge Cannon cannot handle this case impartially and must be reassigned.”
In an interview with NBC News, President Joe Biden stated: “The basis upon which the case was thrown out I find specious.”
What other charges is Trump facing?
In May, Trump was convicted in New York state on charges related to the payment of hush money to an adult film star in order to evade a sex scandal prior to the 2016 election.
A criminal case filed by prosecutors against him over efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, which culminated in the US Capitol riots in January 2021, is ongoing in Georgia.
Jack Smith was also appointed as special counsel to this case.
Also in May, Judge Scott McAfee dropped six of the 41 counts in the Georgia indictment.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges filed against him.
On July 1, the Supreme Court ruled that Trump has immunity for some of his conduct as president in his federal election interference case, but not all actions. His legal team is now seeking to overturn the New York conviction as a result.
Trump has framed all charges against him as being the product of a politically motivated “witch hunt” designed to derail his re-election efforts in November.
What happens next in the classified documents case?
Following the ruling, Peter Carr, spokesman for Special Counsel Smith’s office, said: “The Justice Department has authorised the Special Counsel to appeal the court’s order.”
Smith’s appeal will be presented to a three-judge panel on the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals on a yet-to-be-determined date.
Political analysts say Judge Cannon’s ruling in such a high-profile case, which favours Trump, could pave the way to a seat on the Supreme Court for her if Trump wins the presidential election later this year.
This ruling may also impact the election interference case, which is still pending. Trump’s legal team could use the same argument about the appointment of Smith as special counsel to seek dismissal or a delay to the case.
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