The appeal charges against President Donald Trump’s aides, Waltine Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, in the classified documents case that was launched after the Biden-Harris administration raided Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate were dismissed on Tuesday by a federal appeals court.
Fox News reported that the case was dismissed by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday. According to CBS News, Hayden O’Byrne, acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, had requested last month that the court dismiss the appeal in the classified documents case by former Special Counsel Jack Smith, who was appointed under the Biden-Harris administration.
In Tuesday’s order, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals wrote, “Appellant’s ‘Unopposed Motion to Dismiss Appeal’ is GRANTED. This appeal is DISMISSED.”
According to Fox News, De Oliveira, Trump’s property manager for Mar-A-Lago, and Nauta, Trump’s valet, had both pleaded not guilty to federal charges accusing the two Trump aides of conspiring to obstruct the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigation into classified documents discovered at the president’s residence at Mar-a-Lago.
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According to Fox News, Smith was appointed as special counsel by former Attorney General Merrick Garland in November of 2022. As special counsel, Smith led the Biden-Harris administration’s investigation into Trump’s retention of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago following his departure from the White House in January of 2021. Smith also investigated Trump’s alleged role in the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, and Trump’s actions in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the classified documents case against Trump in July of 2024 after ruling that Smith was unconstitutionally appointed by the Biden-Harris administration as special counsel.
According to ABC News, Cannon’s ruling was appealed by Smith; however, the former special counsel was later forced to drop the appeal against Trump following the 47th president’s landslide victory in the 2024 election since the Justice Department’s policies prevent a sitting president from facing federal prosecution.
