U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, the Trump appointee overseeing his classified documents case, came "out swinging at special counsel" Jack Smith on Monday, striking two sealed motions filed by Smith's team and directing him to address the legal propriety of an "out-of-district grand jury" that is continuing to investigate the case, Politico's Kyle Cheney reported. "Among other topics as raised in the Motion, the response shall address the legal propriety of using an out-of-district grand jury proceeding to continue to investigate and/or to seek post-indictment hearings on matters pertinent to the instant indicted matter in this district," the Florida judge wrote.
Legal experts raised concerns about the ruling. "Looking like a good week to ask the 11th Circuit to replace the judge," tweeted former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance. "If the DOJ filed under seal certain documents, and Judge Cannon just disclosed the existence of an otherwise confidential grand jury proceeding, we might be at the motion for recusal stage for the DOJ," added MSNBC legal analyst Katie Phang. "I'm betting that Judge Cannon's account of the out-of-district investigation is not the full story. But hard to see how she can justify not sealing her order referring to another Grand Jury. Could this be a possible vehicle for taking her up and seeking her recusal? Not clear yet," wrote former U.S. Attorney Harry Litman.
Bloomberg's Zoe Tillman noted that Smith's team previously confirmed that they continue to use the D.C. and Florida grand juries after Trump's indictment to "investigate further obstructive activities." But former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann, who served on special counsel Bob Mueller's team, said Cannon's ruling "clearly shows her ignorance (bias? both?)" The "obstruction crimes that were investigated are charges that could have been brought in FLA or in DC and thus could be investigated in either district. And there was conduct that is alleged to have occurred outside FLA," he explained.
