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| EFE |
Special prosecutor Jack Smith has requested federal judge Aileen Cannon, in charge of this criminal case against Trump in South Florida, to reconsider Friday's ruling that would allow Trump's defense to publicly disclose the identities of witnesses and their testimonies before the court.
Smith argues that revealing the names could expose these witnesses to "significant and immediate risks of threats, intimidation, and harassment," and that there are not sufficient reasons to make their identities public.
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The prosecutors in charge of the investigation have asked Cannon to protect the identities of several involved witnesses, considering that there are intolerable and unnecessary risks if their names were revealed before the trial.
Previously, the judge, who plans to start the trial on May 20, had allowed that information not to be available to the defense or the public.
Cannon was nominated in 2020 by former President Trump, who will likely be the Republican candidate in the November presidential elections.
In addition to the case in Florida, Trump faces three other criminal charges, two of them related to the "big lie" he promoted about alleged electoral fraud in the 2020 elections, where he lost to President Biden.
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The Republican is accused of attempting to manipulate the election results in Georgia and intervening to overturn electoral results in a case related to the Capitol riot.
He is also accused in New York of illegal payments to the adult film actress Stormy Daniels during his presidential campaign.
The trial in Florida, expected to last two weeks, will take place in a federal court in Fort Pierce, north of Miami.