TWICE PROBED: Special Counsel secretly adds a SECOND grand jury
The secrecy under which grand juries work can produce explosive news and endless questions. Today, The New York Times reports that Speical Counsel Jack Smith quietly convened a second grand jury. But this grand jury is convened in South Florida.
The South Florida Grand Jury is presumably looking at additional findings pertaining to activities at Mar-a-Lago, involving the files and/or other activities that occurred in South Florida.
The original grand jury, the one that people suspect is about to issue an indictment with respect to Trump’s handling of the files, was empaneled in Washington, DC.
The fact that Smith chose to impanel a grand jury in South Florida opens up endless questions and very few answers.
That grand jury has just now started hearing evidence.
No one knows with any certainty why Smith would open a second grand jury. As quoted by The New York Times:
“We know a tiny fraction of what agents and prosecutors know, and so it is hazardous, if not impossible, to figure out the government’s strategy from afar,” said Chuck Rosenberg, a former U.S. attorney, and F.B.I. official. “It is like the guy berating an umpire for missed calls from the cheap seats.”
Well, this attorney will not speculate about the government’s strategy.
But there are some logical conclusions one can infer as almost obvious.
Given that the Washington DC grand jury is expected to indict Trump at some point in the near future, the second grand jury is examining separate crimes.
Prosecutors prefer to bring cases in the venue in which the crime occurred, which informs us on the matter.
We know that Jack Smith spent months closely investigating evidence of obstruction of justice (if the sources from the reports can be trusted).
The National Archives sent the letters and subpoenas to Trump from Washington DC and Trump took the documents from the White House, it makes perfect sense that most crimes pertaining solely to taking the files would be examined by a Washington DC grand jury.
It follows naturally that the South Florida grand jury is hearing evidence that may involve separate crimes committed by Trump and/or possibly others in South Florida.
There have been reports that Trump showed the documents to various people. The action — showing the documents — would occur in South Florida and is offered only as an example as to why a grand jury in South Florida might be impaneled.
It is also logical to consider that the grand jury in South Florida may be looking at possible criminal targets beyond just Donald Trump, people who live in South Florida and assisted Trump in South Florida.
A conspiracy to obstruct justice or espionage would be two examples of why a South Florida grand jury would be convened.
I am not guessing about Smith’s strategy in convening a second grand jury or speculating on the crimes (only giving examples as to why a South Florida grand jury might be useful).
One thing is certain.
From Donald Trump’s perspective, this is horrible news. It is horrible news knowing that you are the target of one grand jury.
Learning that there is now a second grand jury impaneled to hear evidence… well, that’s double trouble.
And there is nothing preventing Smith from impaneling a third…
More from Occupy Democrats: OP-ED: Day of reckoning for Trump brings mixed feelings of glee, dread
I can be reached at jasonmiciak@gmail.com and on Twitter @JasonMiciak.
Editor’s note: This is an opinion column that solely reflects the opinions of the author.
