Donald Trump’s lawyers meet with Justice officials as charging decision nears in Mar-a-Lago case – Twin Cities

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WASHINGTON Donald Trump’s lawyers met with Justice Department officials Monday as a decision looms on whether to file criminal charges over the handling of classified documents on the former president’s Florida estate.

Trump’s lawyers two weeks ago requested a meeting with Attorney General Merrick Garland to express concerns about their alleged prosecutorial misconduct and overreach by the team led by special counsel Jack Smith. But a defense attorney’s meeting with Justice Department officials is also often used as an opportunity to try to persuade prosecutors against bringing charges into the final stages of an investigation.

It’s unclear what was discussed at the meeting, but Trump, in a social media post and talk radio interview, signaled he was open to the possibility of being indicted and repeated his attacks on the investigation.

A trio of Trump lawyers James Trusty, John Rowley and Lindsey Halligan exited the Justice Department headquarters in Washington on Monday morning after spending more than an hour inside. They got into a black sport utility vehicle and did not respond to reporters’ questions.

Garland and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco were not present for the meeting but special counsel Jack Smith was. The Justice Department had no comment on the meeting.

After the meeting, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform in capital letters: How can the DOJ charge me, who did nothing wrong when no other presidents have been charged. He pointed to the investigation into his 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton, which ended without criminal charges, and a separate ongoing investigation into the presence of classified documents in an office and home of President Joe Biden. And he described it as a witch hunt.

He also called the Todd Starnes radio show, where he confirmed the meeting with his lawyers and said, Well, I can only say this: They did come in and they saw them and they said it was very unfair. No other president has ever been charged with anything like him.’

The Trump investigation differs from both the Biden and Clinton investigations, however, in that prosecutors for months have been examining whether Trump or his deputies sought to obstruct their inquiry and their efforts to recover the classified documents. After suspecting that not all of the classified documents had been returned, the FBI in August obtained a search warrant and returned to Mar-a-Lago and recovered an additional 100 classified documents.

Mar-a-Lago’s investigation into the potential mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, with a charging decision likely imminent. Prosecutors put a wide cross-section of witnesses, including lawyers for Trump and close aides, before a grand jury.

Trump’s lawyers issued a letter to House lawmakers in April that laid out possible defenses and characterized the investigation as misguided, politically tainted, and seriously damaged.

In addition to the Mar-a-Lago investigation, Smith led a separate investigation into efforts by Trump and his allies to undo the results of the 2020 presidential election.

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