Special Counsel Jack Smith has raised concerns about former President Donald Trump’s visit to a South Carolina gun store in a recent filing related to Trump’s federal election interference case in Washington, D.C. The filing, submitted on Friday to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, reiterated the government’s request for a gag order on Trump’s “extrajudicial statements” in response to his opposition to it.
Prosecutors highlighted Trump’s incendiary statements, including his suggestion that Gen. Mark Milley should be executed for treason. They argued that no other criminal defendant would be allowed to make public statements insinuating the execution of a known witness in their case, and Trump should not be an exception.
In their filing, prosecutors also mentioned an incident at the gun store during Trump’s visit. Initially, a Trump spokesman claimed that the former president had purchased a gun, but later retracted the statement. Prosecutors pointed out that a video showed Trump in possession of a pistol, contradicting the spokesman’s claim. They argued that Trump either violated his conditions of release by purchasing a gun while under indictment or sought to benefit from his supporters’ mistaken belief that he did so.
Citing federal law, prosecutors stated that it would be a separate federal crime for Trump to purchase a gun while facing a felony indictment. They emphasized that this would also violate his conditions of release.
Judge Tanya Chutkan has scheduled a hearing for October 16 to address the gag order issue and consider the new information presented by the special counsel.