Jack Smith is seeking a "narrow" gag order against Donald Trump for purported witness intimidation, according to court documents unsealed on Friday, and legal experts were quick to speak out about it.
Trump is currently fighting criminal charges related to his alleged subversion of the 2020 election, and the case is being overseen by Judge Chutkan. Trump recently sought to recuse Chutkan for the appearance of bias, but Chutkan appears to be moving forward in the case, unsealing filings on Friday that showed the special counsel sought a gag order.
That news appears to be what many legal scholars and former government attorneys have expected since the beginning.
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Former Bush White House ethics czar Richard Painter said of the news, "Witness tampering and tampering with the jury pool are not allowed while out on bail. Ask SBF what comes next." SBF refers to a crypto executive who was recently jailed pending trial due to his behavior regarding potential witnesses.
Laurence H. Tribe, one of America's leading constitutional scholars also hailed the newly unsealed filing.
"The 1st Amendment doesn’t protect witness intimidation, jury tampering, or threats to the presiding judge or the prosecution," Tribe wrote. "The narrowly tailored gag order that Special Counsel Smith has requested is well within the U.S. Constitution’s limits. About time!"
Former FBI assistant director for counter-intelligence Frank Figliuzzi said, "Trump remains a clear and present danger to the rule of law and the judicial process."
Former prosecutor Harry Litman also added:
"Seeing the procession of Trump's public statements laid out in the DOJ filing seeking a limited gag order really brings home a relentless pattern of potential intimidation of witnesses and prejudicing of jury pool."
