Donald Trump’s lawyers have asked the Department of Justice (DoJ) not to release the special counsel’s report detailing his investigations into the US president-elect.
Jack Smith led two investigations into Trump, one into alleged attempts to overturn his 2020 election defeat and another into his apparent mishandling of classified documents.
Both cases were adjourned, but Smith’s detailed report was due to be published in the coming days.
But in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, Trump’s lawyers urged him to stop “weaponizing the justice system” and submit a report to them.
The correspondence states that Mr. Smith did not have the legal authority to file the report because he was unconstitutionally elected to do the job and was politically motivated. Mr Smith has yet to respond publicly.
Trump’s legal team received a draft of the report over the weekend.
Two investigations led to criminal charges against Trump, but both have since been dropped, in part because of the Justice Department’s longstanding policy of not prosecuting the sitting president.
The former president pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing.
Federal regulations stipulate that any special counsel investigation must end in a report to the Justice Department, and Garland has previously said he would release all such reports.
During his time outside the White House, Trump has faced a series of legal cases, which his lawyers and allies have successfully delayed and thwarted.
Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration faced accusations from Trump’s opponents that they were slow to prosecute cases against the Republican, while Trump’s supporters argued that the prosecutions were politically motivated.
One of Mr. Smith’s two cases involved Trump’s attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which he lost to Biden.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and the case ended in legal limbo after the Supreme Court ruled that Trump is partially immune from prosecution for official acts committed while in office.
Mr Smith later re-filed his case but dropped it after Trump’s 2024 election victory.
He also led the case against Trump over his alleged mishandling of classified documents after he left the White House after his first term as president — allegations Trump has also denied.
The case faced a hurdle when a Trump-appointed judge dismissed the charges, arguing that Mr. Smith was improperly appointed to preside over the case. Mr. Smith fought back again – this time with an appeal – but later dropped that as well.
DoJ guidelines prevent prosecution of sitting president. Mr. Smith clarified that this legal protection also applies to the prosecution of a private citizen who is later elected president.
The news was celebrated by the Trump campaign, which hailed it as a “major victory for the rule of law.”
Mr Smith is also reportedly expected to leave his job before Trump returns to the White House on January 20 and makes good on his threat to fire him.
Despite recent legal victories, Trump still faces sentencing on Friday after being found guilty in New York last year of 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up payments to a porn star.
With less than two weeks until Trump’s re-inauguration as US president, the judge denied the request for a delay, although he had previously made it clear that he would not consider giving Trump custody.
