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January 2021: Trump Leaves Office
From left: Melania Trump and Donald Trump exit Air Force One at the Palm Beach International Airport on the way to their Mar-a-Lago Club not long before Joe Biden is inaugurated as president on Jan. 20.Noam Galai/Getty
Donald Trumpleaves office following the inauguration ofJoe Biden, even as he continues to claim without evidence that the race was stolen from him and vows to fight in court — arguing “this election is far from over.”
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May 2021: The National Archives Reaches Out With Questions
Pat Cipollone.Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty
03of 11January 2022: 15 Boxes of Records Transferred from Mar-a-Lago to NARAMar-a-Lago Club.Joe Raedle/GettyThe National Archives' request for more information regarding missing records ultimately results in “the transfer of 15 boxes of records to NARA in January 2022,” according to a May 2022 letter from archivist Debra Steidel Wall to a lawyer for former President Trump.The letter details how, in its initial review of materials within those boxes, the archives “identified items marked as classified national security information, up to the level of Top Secret and including Sensitive Compartmented Information and Special Access Program materials.” NARA then informed the Department of Justice of that discovery, “which prompted the Department to ask the President to request that NARA provide the FBI with access to the boxes at issue so that the FBI and others in the Intelligence Community could examine them.”
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January 2022: 15 Boxes of Records Transferred from Mar-a-Lago to NARA
Mar-a-Lago Club.Joe Raedle/Getty
The National Archives' request for more information regarding missing records ultimately results in “the transfer of 15 boxes of records to NARA in January 2022,” according to a May 2022 letter from archivist Debra Steidel Wall to a lawyer for former President Trump.
The letter details how, in its initial review of materials within those boxes, the archives “identified items marked as classified national security information, up to the level of Top Secret and including Sensitive Compartmented Information and Special Access Program materials.” NARA then informed the Department of Justice of that discovery, “which prompted the Department to ask the President to request that NARA provide the FBI with access to the boxes at issue so that the FBI and others in the Intelligence Community could examine them.”
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April 2022: Government Formally Requests FBI Get Access to the 15 Boxes
department of justice.Samuel Corum/Getty Images
05of 11May 2022: The FBI Begins Review & Team Trump Gets a SubpoenaDonald Trump.Brandon Bell/GettyAccording to an affidavit made public in August, the FBI begins conducting its preliminary review of the material taken from Mar-a-Lago in mid-May, ultimately finding 184 documents with classification markings including classified, secret and top secret. Some of the documents raise national security concerns, as they deal with human intelligence and intelligence that cannot be shared with foreign allies.This same month, a court filing shows that the custodian of the former president’s records receives a grand jury subpoena seeking all “any and all” classified documents still in Trump’s possession.
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May 2022: The FBI Begins Review & Team Trump Gets a Subpoena
Donald Trump.Brandon Bell/Getty
According to an affidavit made public in August, the FBI begins conducting its preliminary review of the material taken from Mar-a-Lago in mid-May, ultimately finding 184 documents with classification markings including classified, secret and top secret. Some of the documents raise national security concerns, as they deal with human intelligence and intelligence that cannot be shared with foreign allies.
This same month, a court filing shows that the custodian of the former president’s records receives a grand jury subpoena seeking all “any and all” classified documents still in Trump’s possession.
06of 11June 2022: FBI Visits Mar-a-Lago, Trump Team Assures DOJ That There Are No More Classified DocumentsFrom left: Tiffany Trump, Melania Trump and Donald Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday.Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP/REX/ShutterstockPer a court filing, one of Trump’s attorneys contacts the DOJ on June 2 and requests “that FBI agents meet him the following day” to collect any remaining documents. Three FBI agents and a Department of Justice attorney arrive at Mar-a-Lago on June 3 to collect what amounts to 38 classified documents. (Trump’s attorneys later writes in a court filing that Trump himself was on-site and greeted the agents at one point.)Along with the documents, Trump’s custodian of records gives the department a signed letter certifying that “a diligent search was conducted of the boxes that were moved from the White House to Florida” and that all necessary documents had been handed over.According to the Justice Department, neither Trump’s attorney nor his custodian of records say that the documents were declassified — which Trump has since claimed repeatedly —nor assert “any claim of executive privilege” when handing over the documents.The Justice Department further states that Trump’s counsel reaffirms at this time that no other records are stored at Mar-a-Lago and that all boxes had been searched. And while Trump’s attorneys allow the FBI agents and DOJ attorney to visit a Mar-a-Lago storage room during their visit, a DOJ filing says “the former President’s counsel explicitly prohibited government personnel from opening or looking inside any of the boxes that remained in the storage room, giving no opportunity for the government to confirm that no documents with classification markings remained.”
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June 2022: FBI Visits Mar-a-Lago, Trump Team Assures DOJ That There Are No More Classified Documents
From left: Tiffany Trump, Melania Trump and Donald Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday.Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP/REX/Shutterstock
Per a court filing, one of Trump’s attorneys contacts the DOJ on June 2 and requests “that FBI agents meet him the following day” to collect any remaining documents. Three FBI agents and a Department of Justice attorney arrive at Mar-a-Lago on June 3 to collect what amounts to 38 classified documents. (Trump’s attorneys later writes in a court filing that Trump himself was on-site and greeted the agents at one point.)
Along with the documents, Trump’s custodian of records gives the department a signed letter certifying that “a diligent search was conducted of the boxes that were moved from the White House to Florida” and that all necessary documents had been handed over.
According to the Justice Department, neither Trump’s attorney nor his custodian of records say that the documents were declassified — which Trump has since claimed repeatedly —nor assert “any claim of executive privilege” when handing over the documents.
The Justice Department further states that Trump’s counsel reaffirms at this time that no other records are stored at Mar-a-Lago and that all boxes had been searched. And while Trump’s attorneys allow the FBI agents and DOJ attorney to visit a Mar-a-Lago storage room during their visit, a DOJ filing says “the former President’s counsel explicitly prohibited government personnel from opening or looking inside any of the boxes that remained in the storage room, giving no opportunity for the government to confirm that no documents with classification markings remained.”
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June-July: FBI Uncovers Evidence That More Classified Documents Remain at Mar-a-Lago
A law enforcement officer stands outside Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty
In a court filing, the Justice Department specifically notes that it “developed evidence that a search limited to the Storage Room would not have uncovered all the classified documents at thePremises.” That’s because, according to the filing, the government uncovers evidence that government records were “likely concealed and removed from the Storage Room and that efforts were likely taken to obstruct the government’s investigation.”
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Aug. 8, 2022: FBI Executes Search Warrant at Mar-a-Lago
Donald Trump.James Devaney/GC Images
Trump is not in Florida at the time of the FBI search, but his attorney later sayshe watched via security camera live feedfrom his New York City home.
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Aug. 12, 2022: Mar-a-Lago Search Warrant Unsealed
Donald Trump gestures to supporters en route to his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, after leaving the White House on Jan. 20, 2021.Lynne Sladky/AP/Shutterstock
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Floridaunseals the search and seizure warrantalong with the signed receipt from the search, revealing that the investigation centers on potential obstruction of justice andviolations of the Espionage Act.
An inventory of the items taken in the search shows 11 sets of classified documents. Some are marked top secret, which theWall Street Journalnotes should only be available in special government facilities.
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Aug. 26, 2022: Affidavit Used to Procure Search Warrant Is Unsealed
Donald Trump.The White House
One day after a Florida judge ordered its release, the affidavit used to procure the search warrant for Mar-a-Lago is released.
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Aug. 30, 2022: DOJ Releases Photo of Docs Seized at Mar-a-Lago
JOSE ROMERO/US DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE/AFP via Getty Images
Included in the filing is a photo of documents in bright yellow and red folders labeled “Secret” and “Top Secret” that were found in a container in the former president’s office.
“The classification levels ranged from CONFIDENTIAL to TOP SECRET information, and certain documents included additional sensitive compartments that signify very limited distribution. In some instances, even the FBI counterintelligence personnel and DOJ attorneys conducting the review required additional clearances before they were permitted to review certain documents,” officials say in the filing.
source: people.com
