Special counsel Jack Smith filed court papers Friday requesting former President Trump be restricted from publicly speaking about his classified documents case in a way that might pose a danger to law enforcement officials. (Getty Images)
The Justice Department says the policy is routine and meant to limit, rather than encourage, the use of force during searches. Prosecutors noted that the search of the Florida property was intentionally conducted when Trump and his family were out of state and was coordinated in advance with the U.S. Secret Service. Still, the revelation that the dozens of agents sent to search the home were prepared for potential violence was jarring to Trump's supporters, who say the two incidents don't compare since the Justice Department is part of Biden's own administration.
Smith’s filing cites Trump's claim that the FBI "was authorized to shoot me," and was "just itching to do the unthinkable."
"They invite the sort of threats and harassment that have occurred when other participants in legal proceedings against Trump have been targeted by his invective," Smith wrote. "Those risks have the potential to undermine the integrity of the proceedings as well as jeopardize the safety of law enforcement."
FILE - A police officer speaks with a woman outside former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home after the FBI search, in Palm Beach, Florida, Aug. 8, 2022. (REUTERS/Marco Bello)
Earlier this month, Trump called for Smith’s arrest after the prosecutors handling the 45th president’s classified documents case admitted seized documents are no longer in their original order and sequence.
Prosecutors admitted in a court filing that "there are some boxes where the order of items within that box is not the same as in the associated scans." The prosecutors had previously told the court that the documents were "in their original, intact form as seized."
READ SMITH'S FILING – APP USERS CLICK HERE.
Fox News’ Emma Colton and David Spunt, as well as The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Michael Dorgan is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business.
You can send tips to michael.dorgan@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @M_Dorgan.
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