"Judge Cannon's Handling of Trump's Classified Documents Case Draws Legal Expert Criticism"
Federal Judge Aileen Cannon has requested instructions for a trial jury in the classified documents case involving former President Donald Trump, indicating that the debate over whether Trump had the authority to withhold documents from his White House could remain a central issue. The judge's request for incorporating the Presidential Records Act into the trial has puzzled legal experts, leading both sides into hypothetical territory. The judge asked both the Justice Department and Trump's defense team to consider how a jury could be told to weigh the criminal law around national security records if Trump could claim authority under the PRA. This unusual move has left experienced lawyers confused, with some speculating that the judge may want to push some questions about the documents Trump kept to the jury. The exercise is a continuation of a hearing where Trump's attorneys claimed he had unlimited power to decide which documents needed to be returned to the National Archives under the PRA, as Trump seeks to dismiss the charges against him based on the PRA.