Understanding the Now-Dismissed Federal Charges Against Trump for Mishandling Classified Documents

On July 15, 2024, Judge Cannon dismissed the federal classified documents case against former President Donald Trump.

The former president had faced 40 felony counts, including 32 counts of violating the Espionage Act, stemming from allegations that he'd mishandled classified documents after leaving the White House. Trump maintains that he had a legal right to retain the documents.

Judge Cannon granted the defendant's motion to dismiss the case based on the unconstitutional appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith. The constitutional clause at issue here is the Appointments Clause (art. II, § II, cl. 2), which states that officers of the U.S. government must be appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. For inferior officers (here, Special Counsel), Congress can make a law giving appointment authority to the department head (here, the Attorney General)—but hasn't. Because Smith's appointment as Special Counsel took neither route, the judge found his appointment to be unconstitutional.

The judge ruled that dismissal was the only available remedy because Special Counsel Smith had no power to bring the case in the first place.

Prosecutors are expected to appeal this ruling to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Below is a review of the now-dismissed case of United States v. Donald J. Trump.

What Were the Allegations in the Classified Documents Case Against Trump?

Federal prosecutors from the Department of Justice (DOJ) believe Trump committed federal crimes relating to the mishandling of classified documents, including national security documents. They also allege he conspired to hide classified documents and destroy security videos and made false representations to federal investigators. Here's a rundown of the allegations.

Trump Leaves the White House

When Trump left office in January 2021, he took a bunch of boxes containing government records with him to Florida. While it's not unusual for former presidents to do this, they can't take everything with them. Classified documents generally fall under this category, as they require special handling and secure storage and access. There's also a law called the "Presidential Records Act" that requires any records created or received by a president during their term to be turned over to the National Archives after leaving office. These documents are considered to be government property.

National Archives Requests Trump Return Documents

The National Archives made several requests to Trump requesting that the former president comply with the Presidential Records Act. Trump eventually turned over 15 boxes to the National Archives. Upon examining the records, the National Archives discovered numerous (almost 200) classified documents among the records and referred the matter to the FBI.

FBI Investigates Trump's Handling of Classified Documents

The FBI launched an investigation into Trump's handling of classified records. In response to a subpoena, Trump's lawyers agreed to turn over what they claimed and certified were the remaining classified documents. Federal authorities, however, had evidence suggesting that wasn't the case. The FBI got a warrant to search Trump's Mar-a-Lago property in Palm Beach, Florida. During the search, the FBI found thousands of pages of government records and over 100 classified documents.

Federal Grand Jury Indicts Trump

With this new evidence, federal prosecutors brought the case to a federal grand jury in Miami. The grand jury issued an indictment containing 37 counts against the former president, including alleged violations of the Espionage Act.

Federal Grand Jury Issues Superseding Indictment

Several weeks later, the grand jury added new charges and a new co-defendant in a superseding (replacement) indictment, bringing the total number of counts against Trump to 40. The new charges allege Trump wanted employees to delete Mar-a-Lago security camera videos to prevent federal investigators from viewing the footage.

What Were the Charges Against Trump in the Federal Classified Documents Case?

In the superseding indictment (dated July 27, 2023—dismissed July 15, 2024), the federal grand jury indicted Trump on 40 counts, including unlawful retention of national defense information, conspiracy to withhold information from a federal grand jury and federal investigators, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and making false statements to the FBI.

Counts 1 to 32: Willful Retention of National Defense Information

Counts 1 to 32 against Trump alleged violations of the Espionage Act, which makes it a crime to unlawfully possess or retain documents containing national defense information.

The indictment identified 32 allegedly top-secret and secret national defense documents that Trump refused to hand over to government authorities. The documents include intelligence briefings on foreign countries, U.S. nuclear weaponry, and U.S. and foreign government military activities and capabilities.

Each document represented a separate criminal count, and each count carried a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

(18 U.S.C. § 793(e).)

Counts 33 to 37, 40, and 41: Conspiring to Conceal and Withhold Documents from the FBI and a Federal Grand Jury

These counts alleged that Trump, his personal aide, Walt Nauta, and his Mar-a-Lago property manager, Carlos De Oliveira conspired to conceal, destroy, and withhold documents and video footage from the FBI and the federal grand jury.

The indictment alleged their conspiracy involved:

• secretly moving boxes of documents so that Trump's attorneys wouldn't find them and turn them over to the federal grand jury
• making false and misleading statements to the FBI about classified documents in his possession
• attempting to persuade Trump's lawyer to withhold evidence from federal authorities, and
• attempting to persuade a Trump employee to delete security camera footage.

Trump was listed as a defendant in all of the above counts. Nauta faced seven counts and De Oliveira faced three counts for the alleged conspiracy. These counts carried maximum felony penalties ranging from 5 to 20 years in prison.

(18 U.S.C. §§ 1001, 1512, 1519.)

Counts 38, 39, and 42: Making False Statements to the FBI

These counts applied to the individual defendants and alleged that each made false statements to the FBI, which carries a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison.

Count 38 applied to Trump and alleged that his actions in hiding boxes caused his attorney to submit a false certification to the FBI.

Count 39 applied to Nauta and alleged that he provided false information to the FBI in a voluntary interview. Count 42 alleged similar charges against De Oliveira.

(18 U.S.C. § 1001.)