Judge denies Trump bid to dismiss classified documents case over personal records argument

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon on Thursday rejected former President Donald Trump's bid to dismiss charges against him in special counsel Jack Smith's classified documents case.

Trump had argued that the documents in question were his personal records and that U.S. law permitted him to keep them at his Mar-a-Lago estate, Reuters reported. Cannon declined to dismiss the case on those grounds.

The former president filed a litany of motions in February for dismissal in the case, along other lines of reasoning. Among those claims are that he enjoys presidential immunity from prosecution for official acts and the assertion that Smith was appointed illegitimately.

The Supreme Court is slated to hear arguments over Trump's immunity claims on April 25.

Trump pleaded not guilty in June of last year, though Smith subsequently unveiled a superseding indictment in July 2023 with additional counts.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.