Special counsel Jack Smith will use data from Donald Trump's White House cellphone during the ex-president's federal election interference case, a newly released report says. court file revealed.
Three experts who may be called by Smith are expected to reveal Trump's cellphone activities, including his use of Twitter, during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Those experts 'retrieved data from the telephone and processed it'.
The documents state that the experts “have knowledge, skills, experience, training and education beyond the ordinary layperson regarding the analysis of mobile phone data, including the use of Twitter and other applications on mobile phones.”
The prosecutor also collected data from a phone used by an unnamed member of Trump's inner circle.
Experts studied the data on the phones from the period after Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 election until the attack on the Capitol.
One of the experts on January 6 will focus on the geographic location within the White House of Trump and the unnamed staffer and whether or not the Twitter app was in use.
Smith announced in a court filing Monday that he was able to call three experts who studied Trump's cellphone activity on Jan. 6
The indictment accuses the defeated president and his allies of “exploiting the violence and chaos” by calling on lawmakers on the evening of January 6 to delay the certification of Biden's victory
Politico points out in its report on the revelation that the new data could reveal whether Trump “personally approved or sent an ill-fated tweet attacking his vice president, Mike Pence,” which helped spark the crowd on Jan. 6 to bring.
Politics points out in its report on the disclosure that the new data could reveal whether Trump “personally approved or sent an ill-fated tweet attacking his Vice President, Mike Pence.”
The same report added that the documents do not reveal the full extent of access given to the experts.
During an appearance on CNN, legal analyst Eli Honig told Anderson Cooper that the revelation that prosecutors have access to Trump's phone is “so important.”
“Mobile phones have now become evidentiary bonanzas. They can tell you pretty much anything a person does,” Honig added.
Following his indictment on election interference charges in August, Trump has maintained his innocence. He is charged with conspiracy to defraud the U.S., conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction and attempted obstruction of an official proceeding and conspiracy against rights.
In March 2022, it was widely reported that White House data submitted to the defunct House committee showed there was a gap in Trump's phone logs of nearly eight hours, during the time the attack on the Capitol was in progress.
The committee also investigated whether or not Trump used “burner” phones in the Oval Office.
Trump did respond to these accusations.
“I have no idea what a burner phone is. As far as I know, I have never heard the term,” the ex-president said.
Trump was a no-show at the riot, leading to more than 1,000 people being charged that day for their involvement
On Monday, Smith asked the Supreme Court to rule quickly on whether Trump can be prosecuted on charges he plotted to overturn the 2020 election results.
In an interview, Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton said he had heard the former Apprentice host use the term several times.
The trial will begin on March 4, the day before the Super Tuesday primaries.
On Monday, Smith asked the Supreme Court to rule quickly on whether Trump can be prosecuted on charges that he planned to overturn the 2020 election results.
Smith asked the court to act with unusual speed to avoid delays that could delay the trial of the 2024 Republican presidential front-runner, currently set to begin on March 4, until after next year's presidential election.
Later Monday, the justices indicated they would decide quickly whether to hear the case and ordered Trump's lawyers to respond by December 20. The court's brief order did not indicate what it would ultimately do.
A federal judge ruled that the case could proceed, but Trump said he would ask the federal appeals court in Washington to overturn that outcome.
Smith is trying to bypass the appeals court, the usual next step in the process, and have the Supreme Court hear the case directly.
“This case presents a fundamental question at the heart of our democracy: whether a former president is absolutely immune from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office, or constitutionally protected from federal prosecution when impeached but not convicted before criminal proceedings.” begins? ', the prosecutors wrote.
Trump's presidential campaign criticized Smith for trying to bypass the appeals court.
“There is absolutely no reason to rush this sham to justice other than to hurt President Trump and tens of millions of his supporters.
President Trump will continue to fight for justice and oppose these authoritarian tactics,” the campaign said in a statement.
The court's next meeting is scheduled for January 5, 2024. It is unclear whether the justices would meet sooner to consider Smith's request.