By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press
Special counsel Jack Smith’s team obtained a search warrant in January for records related to former President Donald Trump’s Twitter account, and a judge levied a $350,000 fine on the company for a delay in complying, according to court documents released Wednesday.
The details were included in a decision from the federal appeals court in Washington rejecting Twitter’s claim that a lower court judge was wrong to hold the company in contempt and impose the sanction.
The filing says Smith obtained a search warrant directing twitter to produce “data and records” related to Trump’s Twitter account as well as a nondisclosure agreement prohibiting Twitter from disclosing the search warrant. The filing says the court “found probable cause to search the Twitter account for evidence of criminal offenses.”
Smith has charged Trump, in an indictment unsealed last week, with conspiring to subvert the will of voters and cling to power after he lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden. Trump, a Republican, has pleaded not guilty to charges including conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of Congress’ certification of Biden’s win.
Trump says he is innocent and has portrayed the investigation as political motivated. His legal team has indicated it will argue that Trump was relying on the advice of lawyers around him in 2020 and had the right to challenge an election he believed was rigged.
Trump’s campaign did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
A spokesman for the special counsel’s office declined to comment on the warrant or what exactly it sought. X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, sent an automated reply to a request for comment, saying it would respond soon.
