The Justice Department sued former Trump adviser Peter Navarro in a bid to take possession of emails from during his time in the White House.
The lawsuit claims that Navarro used a personal email account to conduct business that involved presidential records and, as such, he must turn over those emails as they are the rightful property of the National Archives.
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“Mr. Navarro is wrongfully retaining Presidential records that are the property of the United States, and which constitute part of the permanent historical record of the prior administration,” the lawsuit states. “Mr. Navarro’s wrongful retention of Presidential records violates District of Columbia law, federal common law, and the [Presidential Records Act].”
Navarro’s attorneys, John Irving and John Rowley, denied withholding documents from the government.
“As detailed in our recent letter to the Archives, Mr. Navarro instructed his lawyers to preserve all such records, and he expects the government to follow standard processes in good faith to allow him to produce records. Instead, the government chose to file its lawsuit today,” they said in a statement sent to Politico.
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The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., is the latest in a slew of public battles between the former Trump adviser and U.S. government.
In June, Navarro was arrested and charged with contempt of Congress after refusing to provide documents or appear to testify in front of the Jan. 6 Committee. He pleaded not guilty to the charges. A judge set a trial date for Nov. 17.
