Trump aide pleads not guilty to classified documents charges
July 6, 2023
Donald Trump's aide Walt Nauta appeared briefly before a court in Miami on Thursday, where he pleaded not guilty to charges that he helped the former US president conceal top-secret documents Trump took when he left the White House in 2021.
Nauta was charged alongside Trump on June 13 in an indictment alleging the mishandling of classified documents but was not arraigned for lack of a lawyer licensed to practice in Florida.
Attorney Stanley Woodward entered the plea on Nauta's behalf at an arraignment lasting a few minutes. Nauta's new Florida-based lawyer, Sasha Dadan, was also present.
Nauta smiled at reporters but said nothing on his arrival at the court. After the hearing, he went into a conference room without speaking to the press.
What is Nauta accused of?
The indictment filed by special counsel Jack Smith and his team of prosecutors accuses Nauta of conspiring with Trump to conceal records that the former president had taken with him from the White House after his term ended in January 2021.
Nauta faces six counts of conspiracy to obstruct justice, false statements, and withholding and concealing documents. Prosecutors allege Nauta hid boxes of documents from Trump's lawyers who were searching for classified material sought by the US Justice Department.
Prosecutors said that action resulted in a false claim to the Justice Department that a "diligent search" for classified documents had been done and that all documents responsive to a subpoena had been returned.
Nauta is a Navy veteran from Guam who was Trump's valet at the White House before joining him as a personal aide at former president's Mar-a-Lago residence in Miami. He is regularly seen by Trump's side.
What does Trump indictment say?
Trump, front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, pleaded not guilty to 37 criminal counts for allegedly retaining national security documents without authorization and obstructing justice.
The indictment includes violations of the Espionage Act, which criminalizes unauthorized possession of defense information, and conspiracy to obstruct justice, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The indictment alleges Trump intentionally retained hundreds of classified documents that he took with him from the White House to his residence at Mar-a-Lago after leaving the presidency in January 2021.
In addition to the documents case, Trump has been charged in New York with allegedly falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments to a porn star during his 2016 presidential campaign. He also pleaded not guilty in that case.
Trump denies wrongdoing and says the investigations are part of a political plot against him.
dh/jcg (AP, AFP, Reuters)