The US Department of Justice is preparing to ask a Washington DC grand jury to indict Donald Trump for violating the Espionage Act and for obstruction of justice as soon as Thursday, adding further weight to the legal baggage facing the former president as he campaigns for his party's nomination in next year's presidential election.
The Independent has learned that prosecutors are ready to ask grand jurors to approve an indictment against Mr Trump for violating a portion of the US criminal code known as Section 793, which prohibits "gathering, transmitting or losing" any "information respecting the national defence".
The use of Section 793, which does not make reference to classified information, is understood to be a strategic decision by prosecutors that has been made to short-circuit Mr Trump's ability to claim that he used his authority as president to declassify documents he removed from the White House and kept at his Palm Beach, Florida property long after his term expired on 20 January 2021. That section of US criminal law is written in a way that could encompass Mr Trump's conduct even if he was authorised to possess the information, punishable up to 10 years in prison, if convicted. It is understood that prosecutors intend to ask grand jurors to vote on the indictment on Thursday, but that vote could be delayed as much as a week until the next meeting of the grand jury to allow for a complete presentation of evidence, or to allow investigators to gather more evidence for presentation of necessary. |
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| The now-former CNN chief had a vision for the most trusted source in news but failed to gain his newsroom's trust |
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| Two people were killed and five others injured during a shooting in Virginia on Tuesday |
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| 'Parents' rights' agenda taking aim at public education and LGBT+ rights expands its reach to state legislatures |
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What do we know about Sunday's Virginia plane crash tragedy? |
Residents of Washington DC were relishing the pleasant warmth of early summer on Sunday afternoon, relaxing in their backyards, listening to the birdsong or going about their chores at leisure, with nothing to disturb the peace of a fine sunny day. Then, out of nowhere, the still tranquillity was suddenly shattered by a huge sonic boom erupting in the skies overhead. Dogs were sent barrelling from patio furniture, houses rocked where they stood and a couple sitting down to record a folk song were left wide-eyed with panic as the blast interrupted their performance, moments captured on video and documented on social media later that evening after the initial alarm had subsided. The thunder clap proved to have been caused by two F-16 fighter jets, travelling at supersonic speed as they were scrambled into action from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland to intercept a wayward Cessna 560 Citation V private jet. The civilian aircraft had drifted over the capital's restricted airspace without authorisation, passing such sensitive sites as the White House and the US Capitol, its pilot since reported to have been seen "slumped" in the cockpit as investigators hunt for answers. |
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"The grift from this family is breathtaking. Jared Kushner and Ivanka Kushner walk out of the White House, and months later, it turns out, they get $2 billion from the Saudis? That makes us a banana republic." |
– Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie launches his bid for the Republican presidential nomination with a broadside against Donald Trump. Read more |
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