According to former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance, Monday is the deadline for special counsel Jack Smith to provide notice to Donald Trump and his attorneys of "any crimes, wrongs, or other bad acts" the Department of Justice believes he may have commited that will be used as part of his prosecution for attemping to subvert the 2020 presidential election results.
That notice is limited to alleged crimes that are not included in the charges already filed that will be heard in Judge Tanya Chutkan's courtroom. The new evidence being submitted will be subject to approval by the judge, who will rule on what can be used in open court.
Explaining what the 404(b) notice entails, Vance wrote on her Substack platform, "Evidence of a prior crime, for instance, can be offered to prove 'motive, opportunity [to commit the crime], intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, absence of mistake, or lack of accident.'"
Reflecting on the direction the case seems headed, Vance claimed she fully expects Smith will submit "some important evidence" that will bolster his case related the Jan. 6 insurrection and the events surrounding it.
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"Expect him to focus on proving Trump’s state of mind when it comes to election fraud and the absence of a good faith belief that the path he was setting the nation on would not result in the type of obstructive violence we saw on January 6—in other words, it was no mistake," she predicted bnefore adding, "Smith will also have to advise Trump about the permitted purpose he believes he can offer any 404(b) evidence for and the reasoning in support of his view. This, coincidentally, forces Smith (or perhaps gives him the opportunity depending on your point of view), to educate the public a fair bit more about his case."
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