Federal judge orders Trump to respond to DOJ protective order by Monday.

Federal Judge Orders Trump to Respond to Protective Order in Jan. 6 Case

A federal judge has issued a ruling ordering Donald Trump to respond to a protective order filed by the Justice Department. This order would block the former president from sharing details of evidence from⁤ his Jan. 6 criminal case ‌proceedings.

In a court ‍order filed Saturday afternoon, Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled Trump’s legal team must respond to the special counsel’s motion by Monday at 5 p.m.

The order comes after the DOJ issued a court filing ⁢at⁢ about 10 p.m. on Friday, raising concerns ‌about a message Trump posted on his Truth Social account. Prosecutors argue that this message may​ lead to improper sharing of details about his⁤ ongoing criminal proceedings.

Trump Blasts DOJ Protective‌ Order

If Trump’s team‍ seeks to challenge the protective ‌order, they ​must file a​ revised version and submit it to Judge Chutkan before the‌ deadline, ‍according to the ruling.

The protective order was filed in response to a message Trump posted on‌ his Truth​ Social account, stating, “If you go ‌after me, I’m coming after you!” Prosecutors worry that Trump may publicly share evidence from the criminal case, which details his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

In their ⁢filing, prosecutors urged Judge Chutkan to issue an order prohibiting the public release of any findings related to the case.

“Such⁢ a restriction is particularly important in this case because the defendant has previously issued public statements on social media regarding witnesses, judges, attorneys, and others associated with legal matters ‍pending against him,” wrote Senior Assistant Special Counsels Molly Gaston and Thomas Windom in ⁣the filing.

The filing does not explicitly request a gag order against Trump, which⁣ would prevent him from discussing the case outside the courtroom or with the media. However, prosecutors emphasized their‍ intention to share a substantial amount of evidence with Trump’s team while keeping it out of public view during the ongoing criminal proceedings.

Trump’s team‌ strongly criticized these efforts, arguing that the social media post falls under his First Amendment rights to express his opinion online.

“The Truth post ‌cited is the definition of political speech, and was in response to ⁤the RINO, China-loving, dishonest special interest groups and Super PACs, like the ones funded by the Koch brothers and the Club for No Growth,” a Trump spokesperson said in a statement.

The filing comes just days after Trump was arraigned on four federal charges in Washington, D.C. These ‍charges include conspiracy to ⁣defraud the United States, ‍conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction ⁤of and attempt to⁣ obstruct ⁢an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is scheduled to reappear in court on ⁣Aug. 28 for a hearing to determine his trial date.

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