According to MSNBC, the arraignment of Walt Nauta, who is a co-defendant alongside Donald Trump in a classified documents case against Jack Smith, has experienced several delays, causing concerns regarding the timing of the trial. Initially, Judge Aileen Cannon had set an August trial date, but it was clear that this start date was unlikely to be met. Special counsel Jack Smith’s request for a December trial date is considered a more realistic timeline, although it is not guaranteed.
While Trump was arraigned in Miami nearly a month ago, Nauta’s arraignment was postponed to allow him to secure proper legal representation. Specifically, Nauta needed a lawyer admitted to the Florida federal district where he and the former president were charged. However, even after the initial delay, Nauta still did not have appropriate counsel last week, leading to yet another postponement of his arraignment, now scheduled for Thursday.
Thursday was also the deadline for Trump to respond to Smith’s request for a December trial date. However, due to Nauta’s most recent delay, Judge Cannon extended the response deadline to July 10. Given the judge’s past involvement in the litigation before Trump was charged and her appointment by Trump, there may be speculation about the legality of her actions in the criminal case. So far, there is no evidence to suggest that any of her moves warrant her removal, based on legal precedent. The minor extension of the defense response deadline does not appear to significantly change this evaluation.
However, as Nauta finally undergoes his arraignment this week, how Judge Cannon responds to any further delay attempts will be telling. Additionally, her reaction to the defendants’ response to Smith’s trial date request will shed light on her approach. The extent to which the defendants seek to push the trial past December and what Judge Cannon allows will indicate how much Nauta’s pre-arraignment delay may have benefited the defense.
