An attorney for former President Donald Trump has filed a legal notice announcing plans to sue the Justice Department and FBI for $115 million for alleged “malicious political prosecution” and “abuse of process.” The notice baselessly accuses DOJ leadership and Special Counsel Jack Smith of orchestrating a “malicious political prosecution aimed at affecting an electoral outcome to prevent President Trump from being re-elected.” The filing complains that a court-approved search of Trump’s Florida estate in August of 2022 was improper, as was Trump’s subsequent indictment for the sensitive classified documents found. The filing maintains that the DOJ’s “process” was “unconstitutional” and notes that the case was ultimately dismissed by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon last month. Cannon dismissed the case on the grounds that Smith’s appointment as special counsel and the funding for his probe were illegal.
Trump’s notice of claim seeks $15 million for legal costs incurred in defending the Special Counsel proceedings before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, as well as $100 million in punitive damages. The filing, signed on Aug. 7, suggests that the suit would be filed in the same Florida district where Cannon sits. It is a necessary step in filing most civil damages claims against the government. There is no concrete time limit for a response, but if a claimant has not received a “final disposition” within six months of sending the claim, the claimant can treat that silence as a denial and file suit. The filing does not mention the multiple requests from the National Archives and the Justice Department for Trump to return the records, leading to the search warrant being executed after investigators got information that they had been misled.
Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump’s campaign, stated that the action is part of Trump’s fight against the “weaponized Department of Justice” and called for the criminal case against Trump to be dismissed to restore unity to the nation. The notice filed by Trump was signed just before the two-year anniversary of the search and states that failure to supply the requested material within two years from the date the claim accrued could render the claim invalid. It is unclear how much of the $15 million sought for legal costs came from Trump personally, as it is reported that Trump appeared to be using money from a political action committee for his legal fees. In a pending appeal of a defamation verdict against Trump, his attorneys have argued that the punitive damages sought are excessive compared to compensatory damages, raising questions about the $100 million in punitive damages sought in this current case.
It remains unclear what would happen to the legal action if Trump were to be elected president again in November, as well as whether he would be able to direct the Justice Department to pay the damages he is seeking. The filing suggests that the suit would be filed in the same Florida district where Judge Cannon sits, and Trump’s attorney argues that the search of Trump’s Florida estate was improper and that the DOJ’s “process” was unconstitutional. The notice of claim maintains that the legal action taken against Trump was a politically motivated effort to prevent his re-election and that it resulted in significant legal costs incurred by Trump to defend against the charges. The filing does not provide further details on the specifics of the case or how the damages sought would be determined.
