Federal Court Unleashes Trump’s Classified Documents Report as Legal Challenge Deadline Approaches

A federal judge has authorized the release of former special counsel Jack Smith’s findings on President Donald Trump’s handling of classified materials, granting Trump 60 days to challenge the decision before it becomes public.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon maintained an order preventing the Department of Justice from disclosing portions of Smith’s report that detail Trump’s alleged mishandling of records with four congressional leaders, but stated this restriction will expire on February 24.

In her ruling, Cannon rejected a request to compel the release of the report, which investigates classified documents. The judge dismissed the case in July 2024 and found the Department of Justice offers no valid justification for its purportedly urgent desire to share information from an ongoing criminal proceeding with members of Congress.

Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee have urged the release of the Mar-a-Lago section of Smith’s report. In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) stated there is no legal basis for withholding the report, particularly after Smith was called to testify before the House Judiciary Committee behind closed doors despite his request for public testimony.

“This Administration has repeatedly boasted that President Trump is ‘the most transparent and accessible president in American history,'” Raskin wrote. “You are permitting prosecutors to be hauled before Congress to defend their work while denying Congress and the American public the written record that would explain it.”