'Speedy trial' promised by special counsel in Trump case may not go so fast

[bigheadfred]

Sarah N. Lynch
Tue, June 13, 2023
By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith has said former President Donald Trump will have a "speedy trial" in Miami on a 37-count indictment charging him with willfully retaining classified government records and obstructing justice.

But the complexities of handling highly classified evidence, the degree to which Trump's legal team challenges the government's pre-trial motions, and the way the judge manages the schedule could all lead to a trial that is anything but swift, legal experts say.

“In every case that I had involving classified information, we never had a speedy trial," said Stephanie Siegmann, a former chief of the national security unit of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston, who noted that the evidence-sharing process with Trump's defense team known as discovery could potentially take a year.

“This case will be designated complex because it involves classified information," added Siegmann, now a partner with the law firm Hinkley Allen.

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https://news.yahoo.com/speedy-trial-promised-special-counsel-100553956.html

[Kamaji]

The real question is:  who would benefit more from pushing a trial up to the election, or past it?

[Maj. Bill Martin]

How speedy the trial happens is essentially up to Trump.  If he doesn't waive that right, it'd happen within months.

Realistically, though, the prosecutor is far ahead in terms of evidence gathering, review, and organization.  It's Trump's attorneys who are going to need to more time to get ready.  Not to mention likely filing masses of pretrial motions.

[Kamaji]

How speedy the trial happens is essentially up to Trump.  If he doesn't waive that right, it'd happen within months.

Realistically, though, the prosecutor is far ahead in terms of evidence gathering, review, and organization.  It's Trump's attorneys who are going to need to more time to get ready.  Not to mention likely filing masses of pretrial motions.

Generally true enough, although a wily prosecutor can get a lot of mileage out of exceptions to the speedy trial requirement.

That being said, since it is largely up to Trump, the question is:  does Trump benefit from having a trial early, that is into the appeals stage (or over with in the case of an acquittal) before the election, or from having a trial that takes place after the election, presuming, arguendo, that Trump would be the GOP nominee.

[LadyLiberty]

The real question is:  who would benefit more from pushing a trial up to the election, or past it?

The Democrat nominee. The trial could tie up Trump M-F for a log time during the general, severely limiting his ability to campaign.  If Biden is the nominee, they can pretty much let him hide in the basement,  just like 2020. 

[corbe]

   His sentencing to 55 years will be the dems 'October Surprise'.