Trump, who has a penchant for turning any investigation into a political spectacle, is also relying on his legal team to delay the case. The person tasked with defending the former president could very well serve as the government's top witness in proving that Trump committed a coverup. Corcoran describes how he examined the boxes in the storage room and assembled a folder containing 38 classified documents to hand over to federal prosecutors.ĭuring a discussion about the folder, Trump gestured with a "plucking motion" using his hand, as recounted by Corcoran, implying that "if there's anything really bad in there, like, you know, pluck it out." In one meeting, Corcoran explicitly told Trump that he would search Mar-a-Lago for subpoenaed documents. "Planted info": Trump rages on Truth Social hours before arraignment after he can't find new lawyerĬorcoran's recollection of the conversations he had with the ex-president exposes the extent to which Trump went in order to evade compliance with the subpoena. "Importantly, Corcoran is someone that President Trump himself handpicked to act on his behalf on very sensitive matters – that will make it only more difficult for President Trump to now attack Corcoran's credibility." "Corcoran's testimony clearly demonstrates Trump's criminal intent and that is crucial," Temidayo Aganga-Williams, partner at Selendy Gay Elsberg and former senior investigative counsel for the House Jan. They also obtained phones and subpoenaed documents from a broad range of his advisors.īut Corcoran's notes serve as crucial evidence that underpins the most serious criminal charge against Trump: conspiracy to obstruct justice, which carries the potential penalty of a 20-year prison sentence. In addition to Corcoran's notes, prosecutors also relied on text messages from several of Trump's employees and a recording made by one of his aides, The Times reported. Judge Beryl Howell pierced the protections offered by attorney-client privilege once prosecutors persuaded her that Trump may have used Corcoran's legal advice in furtherance of a crime. Special counsel Jack Smith, who is overseeing the investigation, obtained Trump's lawyer's notes after D.C. "These are things that only Corcoran can substantiate, and he has contemporaneous notes, so he can testify 'I heard this,'" she said, underscoring the importance of his testimony. His alleged comments reveal that Trump wanted the "documents to disappear" and relied on having a certification prepared suggesting that DOJ already had everything, Ross pointed out. "Not guilty": Trump arrested formally arraigned on 37 criminal charges - set free without conditions "Well look isn't it better if there are no documents?" "Wouldn't it be better if we just told them we don't have anything here?" he asked, according to the indictment. Ross added that even after being advised in the "strongest terms" that he has to comply with the subpoena, Trump said he didn't want anyone looking through his boxes and suggested, "What happens if we just don't respond at all or don't play ball with them?" The indictment revealed that Trump exerted pressure on Corcoran to obstruct investigators in their efforts to recover classified materials, even going as far as suggesting that he lie to investigators and withhold the documents entirely. His notes provided prosecutors with a "road map" to build their case, The New York Times reported. "These are contemporaneous renditions of what was going on," Catherine Ross, a constitutional law professor at George Washington University, told Salon.Ĭorcoran's notes are an exception to the rule against hearsay, she added, saying he was memorializing his conversations and "didn't just make stuff up." When the indictment of Trump was unsealed on Friday, Corcoran, identified in the documents as "Trump Attorney 1", offered comprehensive insight into Trump's role in attempting to block government efforts to retrieve classified documents. Donald Trump's lawyer Evan Corcoran, who was hired by the former president to defend him against a federal investigation involving his handling of sensitive documents, has now become a key witness in the Mar-a-Lago case.
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