Donald Trump protective order hearing: Key date, what to know

The federal judge overseeing former President Donald Trump‘s 2020 election case has scheduled a hearing for Friday morning to discuss Special Counsel Jack Smith‘s requested protective order.

The hearing date was set after U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan rejected a request from Trump’s defense team to have it scheduled next week. Chutkan had asked both sides to propose a hearing date on or before Friday.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is seeking a protective order regarding which evidence in the criminal indictment against Trump is allowed to be discussed publicly. The former president is facing four counts related to allegations that he attempted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results after losing to President Joe Biden.

Trump’s lawyers argued in a court filing Monday that the DOJ’s proposal was an infringement on the former president’s First Amendment rights and was an attempt from the Biden administration to interfere with Trump’s reelection campaign. The former president has maintained that he is innocent in the case and has claimed that the “fake” indictments against him are a form of election interference.

“Crooked Joe now wants the thug prosecutor, this deranged guy, to file a court order taking away my First Amendment rights, so that I can’t speak,” Trump said during a campaign stop in New Hampshire on Tuesday.

Chutkan scheduled Friday’s hearing for 10 a.m.

What is a protective order?

Protective orders are not uncommon in criminal cases.

Federal prosecutors had filed for the order prior to providing Trump’s defense team with a discovery of the evidence that will be used against him in trial, which may contain personal information regarding the witnesses who spoke with prosecutors or may testify in court against Trump.

The DOJ stated in its order request last week that it was prepared to provide Trump’s defense team with a “substantial” amount of evidence once protections are ensured.

Smith also argued in his request that a protective order is necessary, given that Trump has “previously issued public statements on social media regarding witnesses, judges, attorneys, and others associated with legal matters pending against him.” Prosecutors particularly homed in on a Truth Social post Trump made last week that read, “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!”

Trump’s campaign team said that the post was “political speech” and was not referring to the DOJ’s charges against him. Legal experts have considered, however, that it could count as a violation of the conditions set for Trump’s bond.

Trump’s Requested Order is ‘Boundless’: Smith

Federal prosecutors quickly responded to Trump’s counterproposal Monday evening, claiming that the originally requested protective order by the DOJ was “standard” and “reasonable.”

Smith also listed several “specific deficiencies” in Trump’s offer that federal prosecutors claim would make the language in the protective order “boundless” regarding with whom Trump is allowed to share sensitive information.

“The defendant has proposed an unreasonable order to facilitate his plan to litigate this case in the media, to the detriment of litigating this case in the courtroom,” Smith wrote in the response, which was obtained by Newsweek. “Normal order should prevail.”

Newsweek reached out to Trump’s campaign team via email Tuesday evening for comment on Friday’s hearing.