New court filings indicate that an array of audio tapes featuring former President Donald Trump will be introduced in the upcoming criminal trial concerning his purported mismanagement of classified documents. The news has been confirmed by RadarOnline.com.
It was previously known that one audio recording existed, playing a pivotal role as evidence in the 37-count indictment under the Espionage Act against Trump. This tape seems to imply that not only did Trump possess classified materials post-presidency, but he was also aware of their classification level and the constraints on declassification for a private citizen.
Court documents indicate that the first set of discovery materials handed to Trump's defense included additional recordings and "interviews," which appear to affirm the initial tape's contents. This discovery, labeled as "Production 1," contains written or recorded statements from the defendant himself.
The materials include "Interviews of Defendant Trump conducted by non-government entities, which were recorded with his consent and obtained by the Special Counsel’s Office during the investigation of this case," as per the description. One such interview dates back to July 21, 2021, when Trump interacted with a publisher and a writer, snippets of which appear in the indictment.
The discovery further details other public statements and testimonies challenging the embattled ex-president, referring to "Public statements made by Defendant Trump, including the public statements quoted in the Indictment."
Two final pieces of evidence listed pertain to Walt Nauta, a former Trump aide and co-defendant. An "FBI interview" conducted with Nauta on May 26, 2022, along with his grand jury testimony from June 21, 2022, are being considered as part of the evidence.
Kaitlan Collins, during Wednesday's CNN Tonight, divulged the news about these freshly submitted court documents to anchor Abby Phillip.
Though the initial tape, part of the indictment, was a result of a discussion between Trump and ghostwriters for Mark Meadows, it remains unclear whether the additional recordings were captured in a similar private context.
Collins expressed, "We don’t yet know what these other recordings are. We don’t know what is on them. We don’t know how relevant they are." She noted, however, that the recordings were made with Trump's consent, hinting they could be public remarks he made regarding classification and declassification processes.