published23. August 2022, 02:17
Mar-a-Lago in FloridaDonald Trump sues FBI raid
Former US President Donald Trump wants to use a lawsuit against the search of his property to have a neutral auditor appointed.
“They even stole my three passports”: Donald Trump in New York.
REUTERS/David Delgado
The federal police took material that they shouldn’t have taken, writes Donald Trump on the Truth Social platform. (10 Aug 2022)
IMAGO/Cover-Images/Niyi Fotex
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The FBI has searched former US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.
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In doing so, it came across several data sets that are subject to various levels of confidentiality and secrecy.
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Now the ex-president has sued against the raid.
After the US Federal Police FBI searched his property, former US President Donald Trump wants to file a lawsuit to have a neutral auditor appointed. He should see the documents secured during the mission two weeks ago in Mar-a-Lago in Florida – at the same time the examination by state investigators should be stopped by then, according to a complaint filed by Trump’s lawyers in Florida on Monday.
Trump’s defense attorneys argue that the seized documents may be protected by the US President’s executive privilege: “This matter has drawn the attention of the American public. Merely “reasonable” safeguards are unacceptable when the matter at hand involves not only President Trump’s constitutional rights but also the preservation of the enforcement of privileges,” the document reads. Executive privilege is the President’s prerogative to keep certain information secret.
During a search of Trump’s property, the FBI found and confiscated, among other things, sets of documents classified as top secret. Trump had argued that he released the documents at the time. Incumbent presidents do have far-reaching powers to lift secrecy. But for the release of documents there is a formal procedure with several highly official steps. The search caused a stir in the United States and accusations from Trump supporters that the Justice Department was attacking Trump for political reasons.
(DPA/chk)