Report: Trump lawyer must turn over evidence, court rules
Special counsel Jack Smith scores a major win in his investigation into Donald Trump's handling of classified material. The Washington Post reports that an appeals court ruled Trump attorney Evan Corcoran must provide notes, transcripts and other evidence to prosecutors. The Post goes on to report, lawyers for the former president had argued that the material being sought was protected by attorney-client privilege, which in most instances shields any communications between a lawyer and a client. Prosecutors responded and US District Judge Beryl Howell ultimately agreed that the crime fraud exception to attorney-client privilege applied in this case. The special counsel has been trying to force Evan Corcoran to testify since mid-February. To be clear, a judge ruled that the special counsel presented sufficient evidence in court that Donald Trump, the former president, committed a crime via his attorney. And of course, this is all happening as we wait for a Manhattan grand jury to decide whether to indict Trump in that other criminal case, the Stormy Daniels Hush Money case.
Two sources tell NBC News that District Attorney Alvin Bragg plans to convene the grand jury again tomorrow. The panel was scheduled to meet today, but that was called off. It's still not clear why. During their last meeting, the jurors heard from a Trump ally named Robert Costello, who was once an advisor to Michael Cohen. The former president's lawyers had hoped Costello would undercut Michael Cohen's testimony. Today, Costello issued a statement in which he advised the Manhattan DA to call a timeout and decide if they can go forward with this case and this witness. Meanwhile, people who have recently visited Mar-a-Lago say there is a war room mentality with the possible indictment looming.
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Stephanie Ruhle