A federal judge has granted Donald Trump's request for an independent review of the materials seized by the FBI from his Mar-a-Lago resort in what CNN deems "a significant victory for the former president." Trump's lawyers argued a neutral third-party "special master" was required in the case because of distrust in the Justice Department; "at issue," explains The Washington Post, "is whether [Trump] can block prosecutors from making use of documents he says should be protected by some form of legal privilege."
The decision by District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, also halts the Justice Department from continuing its review of the Mar-a-Lago documents "pending completion of the special master's review or further court order," though federal prosecutors will likely appeal the decision, CNN reports.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The First Homosexuals: The Birth of a New Identity, 1869–1939Feature Wrightwood 659, Chicago, through Aug. 2
-
Why the FDA wants to restrict kratom-related productsIn the Spotlight The compound is currently sold across the United States
-
Israeli NGOs have started referring to Gaza as a 'genocide' — will it matter?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION For the first time since fighting began in 2023, two Israeli rights groups have described their country's actions in the Gaza Strip as 'genocide' while famine threatens the blockaded Palestinian territory
-
Senate confirms Trump loyalist Bove to top courtSpeed Read The president's former criminal defense lawyer was narrowly approved to earn a lifetime seat
-
Ghislaine Maxwell offers testimony for immunitySpeed Read The convicted sex trafficker offered to testify to Congress about her relationship with late boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein
-
Judge halts GOP defunding of Planned ParenthoodSpeed Read The Trump administration can't withhold Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood, said the ruling
-
Trump contradicts Israel, says 'starvation' in GazaSpeed Read The president suggests Israel could be doing more to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians
-
The Pentagon's missing missilesFeature The U.S. military is low on weapons. Can it restock before a major conflict breaks out?
-
Rescissions: Trump's push to control federal spendingFeature The GOP passed a bill to reduce funding for PBS, NPR and other public media stations
-
Knives come out for Pam BondiIN THE SPOTLIGHT She wasn't Trump's first pick to lead the Justice Department. After months of scandals and setbacks, is the attorney general's MAGA shelf life winding down?
-
Can Gaza aid drops work?Today's Big Question UN's Palestinian refugee agency calls plan a 'distraction and smokescreen' as pressure mounts on Israel to agree ceasefire and fully open land crossings
