Former President Donald Trump has begun fighting back against Biden’s weaponization of the Department of Justice. On Monday his legal team announced it will be suing the U.S. Department of Justice in response to the FBI’s raid on his Mar-a-Lago estate on August 8, 2022.
The raid, part of a federal investigation into Trump’s alleged improper retention of classified records, led to the appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith. Smith’s investigation culminated in 37 felony charges against Trump, including willful retention of national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and making false statements. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
However, the case took a dramatic turn last month when U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed all charges against Trump. Cannon ruled that Special Counsel Smith had been unlawfully appointed and funded, citing the Appointments Clause of the Constitution as the basis for her decision.
Now the former president is punching back, writes Fox News.
Trump attorney Daniel Epstein filed the notice to sue the Justice Department. The Justice Department has 180 days from the date of receipt to respond to Epstein’s notice and come to a resolution. If no resolution is made, Trump’s case will move to federal court in the Southern District of Florida.
“What President Trump is doing here is not just standing up for himself – he is standing up for all Americans who believe in the rule of law and believe that you should hold the government accountable when it wrongs you,” Trump attorney Daniel Epstein told Fox Business’ Lydia Hu.
Epstein’s filing states that the “tortious acts against the president are rooted in intrusion upon seclusion, malicious prosecution, and abuse of process resulting from the August 8, 2022 raid of his and his family’s home at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach Florida.” Epstein added that the decisions made by the DOJ and FBI regarding that raid were “inconsistent with protocols requiring the consent of an investigative target, disclosure to that individual’s attorneys, and the use of the local U.S. Attorney’s Office.”
Epstein argues the decisions made by Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray were not grounded in “social, economic, and political policy” but instead, in “clear dereliction of constitutional principles, inconsistent standards as applied to” Trump and a “clear intent to engage in political persecution – not to advance good law enforcement practices.”
Epstein also criticized the FBI’s raid on Mar-a-Lago, stating that their actions violated standard search protocols and Trump’s expectation of privacy, calling the raid a severe and offensive intrusion.
This legal move marks another chapter in the ongoing battle between Trump and federal authorities over the handling of classified materials and the broader implications of the investigation, a crime that Biden also allegedly committed, but was deemed too incompetent to stand trial for. The lawsuit could set a significant legal precedent regarding the powers and conduct of federal agencies in investigations involving former presidents.
