Judge vacates start date for Donald Trump's classified documents trial, with no new date yet decided

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, overseeing former President Donald Trump's classified documents case in Florida, has vacated the start date of the trial, which was most recently set for May 20.

Cannon, who was appointed by Trump, set the May date as a compromise between the prosecution's plea to set the trial in December and the defense's request to postpone it until after the 2024 presidential election.

In a filing on May 7, Judge Cannon wrote: "Finalization of a trial date at this juncture — before resolution of the myriad and interconnected pre-trial and CIPA issues remaining and forthcoming — would be imprudent and inconsistent with the Court's duty to fully and fairly consider the various pending pre-trial motions before the Court, critical CIPA issues, and additional pretrial and trial preparations necessary to present this case to a jury."

Cannon has not set a replacement date for the trial.

Trump is accused of unlawfully retaining hundreds of classified documents at his resort in Florida. He is charged with 37 felony counts of mishandling classified material. In July of 2023, prosecutors added more felony charges of obstruction and willful retention of national defense information.