Trump Mar-a-Lago classified files case: Judge sets 20 May trial date

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A federal judge has scheduled ex-President Donald Trump’s trial for alleged mishandling of classified documents for spring next year.

Judge Aileen Cannon set the case for 20 May. Mr Trump had wanted the trial postponed until after the November 2024 presidential election.

The high-profile case will begin with the election campaign in full swing.

Mr Trump, 77, faces serious charges over the storage of sensitive files at his Florida home.

Prosecutors say he illegally kept secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left office and obstructed government efforts to retrieve them.

The former president has maintained his innocence, lambasting the case as an attempt to destroy his election campaign.

On Friday, Judge Cannon, a Trump appointee, said the two-week trial would take place in Fort Pierce, Florida.

The former president pleaded not guilty to 37 federal counts during an arraignment in Miami last month.

Mr Trump’s personal aide, Walt Nauta, was also charged in the case. He, too, pleaded not guilty.

Lawyers for both sides argued in the Fort Pierce court earlier this week over when the case should be held.

Prosecutors said the evidence was not complicated and there was no need to delay the trial. They wanted it to begin in December.

But lawyers for Mr Trump had argued that the “extraordinary” nature of the case required more time to prepare.

They said their client could not get a fair trial before the November 2024 election.

Opinion polls indicate Mr Trump is the runaway front-runner in the race to become the Republican party candidate who will challenge the Democratic nominee, in all likelihood President Joe Biden, next year.

The Mar-a-Lago case is one of several legal challenges Mr Trump is facing.

In April, he was charged with falsifying business records in the state of New York.

Mr Trump announced this week that he expected to be arrested soon in connection with a federal inquiry into the US Capitol riot two years ago and his efforts to challenge the 2020 election results.