Donald Trump documents trial indefinitely postponed by Judge Aileen Cannon
- Judge’s decision makes it unlikely case will be heard before the November presidential election
- Donald Trump faces dozens of felony counts accusing him of illegally hoarding classified documents
Donald Trump’s trial in Florida on charges of illegally keeping classified documents after leaving office has been indefinitely postponed, a judge decided on Tuesday, greatly reducing the odds he will face a jury in either of the two federal criminal cases against him before the November 5 US election.
Trump, seeking to regain the presidency, previously had been scheduled to go to trial on May 20 in the documents case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith, but the prosecution and defence had both acknowledged that date would need to be delayed.
US District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was appointed to the bench by Trump in 2020, said on Tuesday the trial would no longer begin on May 20 but did not set a new date. Cannon scheduled pre-trial hearings to run through July 22.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 40 federal counts accusing him of retaining sensitive national security documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida after leaving office in 2021 and obstructing US government efforts to retrieve them.
Trump is the Republican candidate challenging US Democratic President Joe Biden, who defeated him four years ago.