Federal judge appoints special master to review documents seized at Mar-a-Lago

A national justice appointed a peculiar maestro to reappraisal documents seized from erstwhile President Donald Trump's Florida estate, portion denying the Justice Department continued entree to astir 100 classified documents collected astatine the property.

In an bid Thursday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon named Raymond J. Dearie, elder U.S territory justice for the Eastern District of New York, to reappraisal each of the materials seized connected Aug. 8.

The Justice Department had asked for a enactment of the judge's erstwhile motion so it could proceed to reappraisal the seized documents for usage successful an ongoing transgression investigation. Cannon denied that request, saying she isn't prepared to judge each of the department's assertions astatine look worth without the peculiar maestro reappraisal process. 

"The Court does not find it due to judge the Government's conclusions connected these important and disputed issues without further reappraisal by a neutral 3rd enactment successful an expedited and orderly fashion," Cannon wrote successful the Thursday evening ruling. 

Dearie, a erstwhile national justice nominated by President Ronald Reagan, was among a brace of candidates recommended by Trump's ineligible squad for the relation of peculiar master. The Justice Department, which had projected 2 candidates of its own, aboriginal approved of Dearie for the role.

Cannon laid retired the duties of the peculiar maestro to see conducting a "privilege review" of the documents and checking them against the spot inventory, arsenic good arsenic making recommendations astir idiosyncratic items, documents and statesmanlike records that mightiness beryllium nether quality betwixt the parties.

Cannon said the peculiar maestro would besides beryllium liable for evaluating immoderate claims regarding the instrumentality of property.

The justice acceptable a deadline of November 30 for Dearie to reason his reappraisal and classifications.

The improvement comes aft the Justice Department said successful a court filing last week that it would entreaty Cannon's ruling to the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.