JUST IN: Judge Aileen Cannon Issues Major Ruling In Trump Case

Federal Judge Aileen Cannon just gave special counsel Jack Smith a lucky break in his classified documents case against former President Donald Trump.

In a ruling handed down Tuesday, Cannon opted to side with Smith over the concealment of the identities of certain government witnesses who will testify that President Trump allegedly took documents from the White House knowing that he did not have the power to do so. Shrouding their identities, Smith had argued, prevents reprisal against his witnesses should Trump be elected in November.

“The Court is satisfied that the Special Counsel has made an adequate showing on this issue under Rule 16, at least at this juncture pending final trial preparations,” according to the court document reviewed by the Daily Caller. “The Court directs the Special Counsel … to file under seal an index containing the name of each potential government witness and a corresponding pseudonym/anonymization for use in the redactions of Defendants’ MTC.”

Smith may now release statements by certain witnesses using pseudonyms and redacting certain identifying information.

“The Special Counsel shall file under seal an index identifying each potential government witness identified in any of the discovery materials attached/referenced in the MTC, giving each a corresponding pseudonym/anonymization (e.g., “John Smith” – NARA Employee 1).”

Judge Cannon said she would have moved faster on the matter, but chided Smith for failing to present all arguments for anonymity earlier in proceedings.

“Although the record is clear that the Special Counsel could have, and should have, raised its current arguments previously, the Court elects, upon a full review of those newly raised arguments, to reconsider its prior Order,” she stated in the document.

Besides government employees, former Mar-a-Lago staffers are also expected to testify about the storage of classified documents found at the Florida compound during an FBI raid in August of 2022. Previous attempts by Smith to restrict the president’s access to documents that will be presented have been shot down by Cannon, prompting Trump’s legal team to move for total dismissal of the case based on prosecutorial misconduct. Last month the federal judge, a Trump appointee, issued an ultimatum to Smith: turn over all documents, even those containing national security secrets, or risk a mistrial.

Delays in the start of the trial have compounded Smith’s general lack of success, making Wednesday’s news all the more notable. Legal observers have warned that a conviction may not come until after Election Day, a development the former president could strike down if he is elected again.

President Trump and his co-defendants have pleaded not guilty, though former Mar-a-Lago staffer Brian Butler, who is referenced as “Trump Employee 5”, has testified to investigators that he unknowingly helped move and store the classified documents.