(Washington) The federal judge presiding over the classified documents case against Donald Trump refused Saturday to drop charges against a co-defendant of the former president.
Lawyers for Donald Trump’s personal valet Walt Nauta had asked District Judge Aileen Cannon to dismiss the indictment against their client.
They argued, among other things, that Walt Nauta was charged because of his failure to cooperate with prosecutors’ investigation and because of a personal animosity that they said prosecutors had against one of Walt Nauta’s attorneys.
Special counsel Jack Smith’s team has denied all the allegations. Judge Cannon, in her four-page order released Saturday, said Mr. Nauta had not met the high standards required to have the case dismissed.
Mr. Nauta and Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira are accused of conspiring with Donald Trump to withhold evidence from investigators as they sought to recover classified documents that were brought to his Palm Beach, Fla., estate after his presidency.
All three men have pleaded not guilty.
No trial date has been set in this case.
Donald Trump also sought to dismiss the case.
Judge Cannon stressed that “the order should not be construed as a comment on the merits of Donald Trump’s motion to dismiss the indictment based on selective and vindictive prosecution or any other pending judicial motion.”