A plea by the former president’s attorneys to postpone a hearing on a proposed protective order was reportedly denied by the judge presiding over special counsel Jack Smith’s 2020 election case against Donald Trump.
Washington, D.C.-based U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan signed an order on Tuesday setting the hearing for Friday at 10 a.m. ET and removing the obligation for the defendant to present.
After receiving a joint filing from Smith’s and Trump’s teams in response to Chutkan’s request that they choose two days and times before the end of the week when they would be ready to attend for a hearing, the order was added to the docket a few hours later.
The government is available “anytime” on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday, according to Smith’s team, but Trump’s legal team requested that the hearing be postponed until the next week due to schedule conflicts.
One day after Trump’s arraignment in Washington, D.C., Smith’s lawyers requested a protection order last week after the former president posted on Truth Social in all capital letters.
After Chutkan rejected their request for a deadline extension over the weekend, Trump’s attorneys submitted their response to Smith’s suggested order shortly before the deadline at 5 p.m. ET.
The defense requested a more limited protective order while expressing worries about an excessive interference with Trump’s First Amendment rights.
Trump’s attorneys rejected Smith’s team’s counterproposal, and on Monday night Chutkan issued the decision directing both sides to determine potential hearing dates and times.
Trump, who is running for president again in 2024, has entered a not-guilty plea to charges relating to an alleged attempt to tamper with the outcome of the last election.
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