Aug. 5 (UPI) — Prosecutors handling former President Donald Trump‘s election fraud case have appealed to the judge to protect their evidence after Trump posted social media comments they said could have a “chilling” effect on witnesses.
Attorneys with special counsel Jack Smith’s office made the request in a filing late Friday before U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in the wake of a Truth Social post by Trump in which the former president wrote, “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!”
Critics claimed the post amounted to witness intimidation while prosecutors cited it as an example of how Trump is capable of using his social media platforms to reveal evidence handed over to his attorneys through the discovery process.
His disclosure of evidence, they said, “could have a harmful chilling effect on witnesses or adversely affect the fair administration of justice in this case,” while appealing to Chutkan to issue a protective order preventing the former president from improperly sharing case materials.
“All the proposed order seeks to prevent is the improper dissemination or use of discovery materials, including to the public,” the prosecutors said.
In making the request, they drew attention to previous public statements about participants in cases against Trump.
“Such a restriction is particularly important in this case because the defendant has previously issued public statements on social media regarding witnesses, judges, attorneys, and others associated with legal matters pending against him,” they argued.
A spokesperson for Trump defended the post as “political speech.”
“The Truth post cited is the definition of political speech, and was in response to the RINO, China-loving, dishonest special interest groups and Super PAXs, like the ones funded by the Koch brothers and Club for No Growth,” the campaign official said in a statement issued to media outlets.
The prosecutors have not requested a gag order in response to Trump’s statement.
