A US judge has refused to allow the Justice Department to resume a review of classified records seized by the FBI from former President Donald Trump's Florida residence, as part of an investigation into his "top secret" government records, while the Justice Department vowed to appeal.
Federal District Judge Elaine Cannon appointed Judge Raymond Deere, the US District Court's chief justice, as a third party to review documents seized by the FBI for material that might be subject to a lien to keep it away from federal investigators.
The Justice Department has promised to refer the case to the Court of Appeals if Cannon rules against its claim.
It also sought to prevent independent arbitrator Deere from examining nearly 100 classified documents among 11,000 collected during a court-approved search of Trump's residence on August 8.
"The Court does not consider it appropriate to accept the Government's conclusions on these important contentious issues without further review by an impartial third party in a prompt and orderly manner," Cannon wrote.
Cannon's ruling further complicates the Justice Department's investigation, as a review by the Special Judicial Supervisor can withhold documents from the prosecution considering the possibility of criminal charges.
Records seized from Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida (Reuters)
Cannon said Thursday it would ask Derry to prioritize reviewing classified records, and ordered him to complete a review of all seized documents by November 30.
On August 8, the FBI searched the former president's residence in Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, and confiscated boxes of classified documents that Trump did not return after leaving the White House despite repeated requests.
Since this unprecedented operation against a former US president, Trump - who is openly talking about his possible candidacy for the presidency in 2024 - is expressing his anger at a measure he considers "illegal and unconstitutional", stressing that it is targeted for political reasons.