DOJ moves to dismiss lawsuit seeking full Jack Smith report
Share this @internewscast.com

Left: FILE – Special counsel Jack Smith addresses the media regarding an indictment against former President Donald Trump on Aug. 1, 2023, at a Department of Justice office in Washington (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File). Center: U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon (U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida). Right: Donald Trump talks to the media before leaving Manhattan criminal court, Monday, May 6, 2024, in New York (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson, Pool).

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice submitted a motion to dismiss a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit seeking to uncover the second volume of former special counsel Jack Smith’s concluding report on the Mar-a-Lago investigation related to President Donald Trump.

The underlying litigation is a relatively terse five-page lawsuit filed in January by The New York Times and one of their reporters.

The plaintiffs claim that the DOJ did not comply with the legal timeline to give a decision on expedited processing of their FOIA request for the second volume of Smith’s report.

Now, the Trump administration, in no uncertain terms, wants to wash its hands of the matter and have the lawsuit dismissed. The filing also offers itself as, in the alternative, a motion for summary judgment.

Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.

To hear the government tell it, those same hands are tied – by an injunction issued on Jan. 21, by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in response to an emergency motion to enjoin the release of the second volume filed by Waltine “Walt” Nauta, Trump’s personal valet, and Carlos de Oliveira, Mar-a-Lago’s chief of maintenance.

The district court’s order enjoins:

Attorney General Garland or his successor(s), the Department of Justice, its officers, agents, officials, and employees, and all persons acting in active concert or participation with such individuals . . . from (a) releasing, sharing, or transmitting Volume II of the Final Report or any drafts of Volume II outside the Department of Justice, or (b) otherwise releasing, distributing, conveying, or sharing with anyone outside the Department of Justice any information or conclusions in Volume II or in drafts thereof.

And the injunction, the DOJ says, is the long and short of the case.

“The Times fails to state a plausible claim for relief under FOIA,” the 15-page motion to dismiss reads. “It is clear from the face of the amended complaint that DOJ did not ‘improperly’ withhold Volume II, as required to state a FOIA claim. DOJ had no choice but to withhold the document, as Judge Cannon’s injunction bars DOJ from releasing it.”

The Times, for their part, says Cannon simply did not have the authority to issue the injunction in question – and suggest the DOJ knows and/or agrees the scope of relief granted by the Trump-appointed judge was beyond the district court’s power.

“Defendant has improperly denied the Request for the Second Volume,” the Times’ amended complaint filed in late April reads. “Because the injunction in the Criminal Action was made by a court that lacked jurisdiction to issue such an injunction, it was not a proper basis for DOJ to deny release of the Second Volume.”

The government says this argument could lead to legal chaos.

“Even if this Court were to agree with the Times that Judge Cannon lacked jurisdiction to enter the injunction, an order compelling DOJ to release Volume II under FOIA would put the agency in the impossible position of having to decide which of two conflicting court orders to follow,” the motion to dismiss goes on.

To hear the government tell it, a 1980 U.S. Supreme Court case is instructive here.

The motion to dismiss argues that case stands for the proposition that there is “no discretion for the agency to exercise” in situations “where records sought under the FOIA are subject to injunction issued by federal district court.”

“The Times concedes that the injunction remains in place and precludes the exact relief sought in this case: disclosure of Volume II by DOJ,” the DOJ filing continues. “The Court should therefore dismiss the complaint pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6), based solely on the factual allegations in the amended complaint. Alternatively, the Court should grant summary judgment in DOJ’s favor.”

In their amended complaint, the Times takes stock of the procedural nature of the extant case – which was appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals after Cannon dismissed the charges against Trump.

“At that point, jurisdiction as a matter of law rested solely with the Eleventh Circuit,” the Times argues. “By operation of law, only the Eleventh Circuit could issue an injunction governing the release of the Second Volume. No such injunction was issued by the Eleventh Circuit, and the Injunction issued by the District Court is a nullity. The District Court also lacked jurisdiction to issue the Injunction because there was no live case or controversy before it, as required by Article III of the Constitution.”

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Maxwell Anderson Quickly Convicted of Sade Robinson’s Murder and Dismemberment

A Wisconsin jury spent approximately 20 minutes deliberating before delivering a guilty…

Jackson Criticizes Supreme Court Justices for Swift Decision Favoring Trump

Left: MIAMI, FL-MARCH 10: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson appears…

Fugitive Ex-Police Chief Convicted of Murder Recaptured After Escaping U.S. Prison

A former US police chief and convicted killer known as the “Devil…

Legal Trouble for Diddy: Judge Warns of Possible Court Ejection

This week ends with more explosive testimony in the government’s case against…

A woman with a history of 60 criminal convictions has been arrested for committing nine thefts, one involving a $1,200 whiskey bottle.

Staff report GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Marie Kimberly Brown, aged 58, was taken…

Fugitive Father Considered Moving to Canada Before Tragic Incident Involving Daughters

An arrest warrant on a federal level has been released for the…

Gainesville Woman Arrested for Leaving Disabled 5-Year-Old Unattended to Visit Jacksonville

Staff report GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Priscilla Aqucila Ealy, aged 32, was taken…

‘Ghost Adventures’ Star Breaks Silence as Ex-Wife’s Outcome is Revealed

Background: Victoria Goodwin appears in court for her sentencing (Law&Crime). Inset: Aaron…

Suspect Apprehended in Case of Virginia Woman Found Deceased in Closet: Police

Background: 600 block of Antrim Drive, Newport News, Virginia (Google Maps). Inset…

Suspected Drug Dealer Accused of Sending Meth Hidden in Minced Meat to Christmas Island

A man who was allegedly paid to hide meth in a large…

Search Efforts in Landfill for Teen Feared Held Against His Will

Authorities searched a Minnesota landfill on Friday amid the ongoing disappearance of…

Judge to Dismiss Jan. 6 Defendant’s Case Following Trump Pardon

Pictured left to right: Elias Costianes (Justice Department). A purported image of…