Judge Rejects Department of Justice’s Argument to Seal the Mar-a-Lago Affadavit

The Department of Justice was unsuccessful in its attempt to seal the Mar-a-Lago raid warrant. The presiding judge called the raid “unprecedented”, and gave the DOJ until late this week for redactions.

The ruling was anticipated but not officially handed down until today. It takes into account the historic nature of the raid on a former President’s house.

” Particularly considering the public and historical interest generated by an unprecedented search for a former president’s home,” Judge Bruce Reinhart stated, “The Government has yet to show that these administrative concerns can be sufficient to warrant sealing .”

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Reinhart stated that he had given the Justice Department the “opportunity of proposing redaction”, something he did last week. This gave the government the deadline for Thursday, August. 25 @ noon.

” Accordingly, it’s hereby ORDERED the Government must file under seal any submission that addresses redactions or provides additional evidence that could be considered relevant to the Motions to Unseal.” The motion states.

Reinhart stated that all of the affidavits should be released, in spite of the Justice Department’s claim that it would compromise future investigations and give a roadmap for them.

Although it is possible that redactions by the Justice Department could make the information unusable, the decision is an important victory in trying to uncover the reason behind the raid. Multiple reports have provided details about what the FBI wanted, while Republicans demanded more information on the extraordinary nature of the raid.

If the Justice Department makes redactions the judge doesn’t like, he may make his own. The DOJ may object to the judge’s decision about what should and shouldn’t go out. According to the FBI, they fear that making public details about their investigation will impact their investigation. This is especially true if it concerns interviewing people of interest.