A group of news organizations asked a federal court Monday to reveal the special counsel's list of 84 witnesses who are prohibited from speaking with former President Donald Trump about the facts of his criminal classified documents case.
The request came three days after special counsel Jack Smith, who led the probe into Trump's alleged mishandling of classified documents, moved to file the witness list under seal with the court.
Smith noted in a court filing Friday that the Department of Justice has shared a list of those witnesses with the lawyers for Trump and Nauta.
The coalition pointed to the First Amendment, common law and the principles of an open judicial system in their appeal to see the witness list.
"The filing of the list of potential witnesses in this case is a highly significant initial step in this extraordinary prosecution," they wrote.
Persons:
Donald Trump, Jack Smith, Smith, Aileen Cannon, Trump, Walt Nauta
Organizations:
Washington Hilton, NBCUniversal Media, CNN, The New York Times, Trump, Department of Justice, DOJ, Government
Locations:
Washington ,, U.S, West Palm Beach , Florida