Attorney James Trusty has put even more distance between himself and former President Donald Trump.
Last week, Trusty withdrew from representing Trump in the criminal case involving Trump’s indictment on allegations that he mishandled classified documents.
On Friday, he filed a court document formally withdrawing from representing Trump in Trump’s defamation lawsuit against CNN.
“Mr. Trusty’s withdrawal is based upon irreconcilable differences between Counsel and Plaintiff and Counsel can no longer effectively and properly represent Plaintiff,” the document said.
Trump’s attorney withdrew from a third legal matter on Friday, just a week after he pulled out of representing him in two federal probes. https://t.co/rg7Lo34tAl
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) June 16, 2023
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“Mr. Trusty’s withdrawal at this time does not adversely impact any parties to this matter: oral argument on Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss has not been scheduled, discovery has not begun, and there are no pending deadlines. Further, Plaintiff continues to be served by co-counsel on the matter, Lindsey Halligan, a member of the Florida Bar,” the document said.
A Trump campaign representative said, “The defamation lawsuit against CNN is entering a new phase, as more irrefutable facts are revealed. We thank Mr. Trusty for his work on this case and wish him all the best,” according to Politico.
Last week, Trusty and fellow attorney John Rowley announced their resignation from Trump’s legal team in a joint statement that followed Trump’s indictment.
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“This morning we tendered our resignations as counsel to President Trump, and we will no longer represent him on either the indicted case or the January 6 investigation,” their statement read.
“It has been an honor to have spent the last year defending him, and we know he will be vindicated in his battle against the Biden Administration’s partisan weaponization of the American justice system,” the lawyers said in their statement.
“Now that the case has been filed in Miami, this is a logical moment for us to step aside and let others carry the cases through to completion,” their statement said.
Politico noted that on Tuesday, when Trump was arraigned on the charges against him of mishandling classified documents, he was represented by attorneys Todd Blanche and Christopher Kise. The site reported that further legal representation is expected to be hired.
In an Op-Ed on the website of the Gatestone Institute, former Harvard Law professor and legal scholar Alan Dershowitz said lawyers are being intimidated.
“There are disturbing suggestions that among the reasons lawyers are declining the case is because they fear legal and career reprisals,” he wrote.
“There is a nefarious group that calls itself The 65 Project that has as its goal to intimidate lawyers into not representing Trump or anyone associated with him. They have threatened to file bar charges against any such lawyers,” he wrote.
Trump’s lawsuit against CNN accuses the network of defamation, according to the New York Post.
The lawsuit seeks $475 million, claiming the network conducted a “campaign of libel and slander” and made “concerted effort to tilt the political balance to the left.”
CNN has filed to have the suit dismissed.
