Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a rally in support of Republican candidates ahead of the midterm elections in Dayton, Ohio, November 7, 2022.
Gaelen Morse | Reuters
A federal judge on Friday denied a Justice Department request to hold former President Donald Trump’s office in contempt of court for allegedly failing to serve a grand jury subpoena, NBC News reported.
The department wanted Judge Beryl Howell to find Trump’s office in contempt for not fully complying with a subpoena issued in May requiring him to return classified documents still in his possession, according to a person familiar with the matter. who spoke to NBC News.
The Justice Department did not comment on Howell’s denial of the motion, which came after a scheduled closed hearing on the matter in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.
The hearing was sealed as it relates to a grand jury proceeding. NBC News was part of a media coalition seeking access to the hearing.
Trump attorneys Evan Corcoran, Jim Trusty and Timothy Parlator were seen entering Howell’s offices during the hearing scheduled for 2:00 PM ET, NBC reported.
The trio were then leaving the courthouse shortly before 3:30 p.m
Federal prosecutors are criminally investigating Trump for failing to return government documents when he left the White House and for possible obstruction of justice.
An August FBI search of his residence at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla., turned up thousands of such records, more than 100 of which were marked classified or highly classified.
Trump last month announced his candidacy for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
Trump’s spokesman said in a statement Friday, “The president and his counsel will continue to be transparent and cooperative, even in the face of a heavily armed and corrupt Justice Department witch hunt.”
“Hillary Clinton was allowed to delete and acid wash 33,000 emails after they were subpoenaed by Congress, but absolutely nothing has happened to hold her accountable,” the spokesman said.
“If the Justice Department can go after President Trump, they will surely go after any American they disagree with.”