Jack Smith, US special counsel, speaks during a news conference in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The emergency motion asked the Court for an immediate hearing to "establish the impropriety of unchecked release; the scope of the resulting prejudice; and the specific materials contained in the Report for which release is impermissible."
"The Final Report promises to be a one-sided, slanted report, relying nearly exclusively on evidence presented to a grand jury and subject to all requisite protections—and which is known to Smith only as a result of his unconstitutional appointment—in order to serve a singular purpose: convincing the public that everyone Smith charged is guilty of the crimes charged," Nauta and De Oliveira's attorneys wrote.
"But Nauta’s and De Oliveira’s criminal cases are not over; the appeal of this Court’s dismissal order by Smith is still pending," the motion says. "The Government notably continued briefing the appeal even following the dismissal of the appeal as to President Trump. There remains the threat of future criminal proceedings as to Nauta and De Oliveira, and those proceedings will be irreversibly and irredeemably prejudiced by dissemination of the Final Report."
It is customary for a special counsel to release a final report when his or her work is done, detailing the findings of their investigation and explaining any prosecution or declination decisions they reached as a result of the probe. In Smith's case, the prosecution decision is immaterial, given Trump's status as president-elect and longstanding Justice Department policy against bringing criminal charges against a sitting president.
The report would first go to Attorney General Merrick Garland’s office for review, according to standard practice.
Trump’s attorney Todd Blanche, who is poised to be in a senior role at the Department of Justice, is asking Garland not to release the report.
"Smith’s proposed plan for releasing a report is unlawful, undertaken in bad faith, and contrary to the public interest," Blanche wrote in an exhibit attached to the same motion. "Smith’s conduct also raises grave concerns under Article II because it unlawfully encroaches on the Executive authority of the incoming Administration of President Trump to resolve the issues surrounding Smith’s Office in accordance with President Trump’s commanding national mandate from the voters."
Carlos De Oliveira, center, an employee of Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, arrives for a court appearance with attorney John Irving, at the James Lawrence King Federal Justice Building, Monday, July 31, 2023, in Miami. (Wilfredo Lee/AP)
But he still must outline the investigation and its findings in his report to Garland, who will then decide whether to share it publicly.
Notably, Garland has opted to release the reports from two other special counsels whose investigations concluded during his tenure — publishing both the summary reports submitted by John Durham, who was tapped by then-Attorney General Bill Barr in 2019 to review law enforcement and intelligence gathering during the 2016 presidential campaign and the origins of the Trump-Russia probe, as well as the final report from Robert Hur, a former U.S. attorney whom he tapped in 2023 to investigate President Biden's handling of classified documents.
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These reports were made public at the same time as they were shared with members of Congress. It is unclear whether Garland will move to do the same with Smith's findings, given their sensitivity and Trump's status as president-elect.
Fox News' Breanne Deppisch contributed to this report.
Danielle Wallace is a breaking news and politics reporter at Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to danielle.wallace@fox.com and on X: @danimwallace.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/former-trump-co-defendants-want-judge-block-special-counsel-jack-smith-report