Cannon,who was appointed to her post by Trump,ruled that the question “warrants serious consideration” but should not be decided at this point.
Trump,the Republican challenger to President Joe Biden in the November election,has pleaded not guilty to a 40-count indictment that accuses him of illegally taking sensitive government documents with him when he left the White House in 2021.
It is one of four criminal cases he faces as he tries to win back the White House. In a further development on Friday (AEDT) in one of the other matters,this one involving hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels,Trump’s trial could now be delayed by at least a month due to thousands of pages of new evidence in the case.
Trump has filed a flurry of legal motions in his four criminal cases. If he were to win back the presidency,he would have the power to end the two federal cases against him,though he would not be able to stop the two cases brought under state law.
In the document case,Trump’s lawyers have made five other arguments for dismissal,which could be considered in future hearings that have not yet been scheduled.
The timing of a trial is uncertain. US Special Prosecutor Jack Smith has sought a July start,while Trump suggested August even as he argued a trial should not happen before the election.