Walt Nauta, the personal aide to former U.S. President Donald Trump, arrived at the Alto Lee Adams Sr. U.S. Courthouse in Fort Pierce, Florida on August 10, 2023.
Marco Bello | Reuters
The defense lawyer representing Donald Trump’s valet, Walt Nauta, expressed his concerns on Friday, stating that he had received threats after special counsel Jack Smith revealed that a Mar-a-Lago IT director had admitted to providing false testimony in the former president’s case regarding classified documents.
Stanley Woodward, the attorney who represented IT director Yuscil Taveras when he gave false testimony to a grand jury, faced criticism in Smith’s recent court filing. Taveras changed his story only after dropping Woodward as his attorney and obtaining new legal representation. He admitted to being instructed to destroy security footage, as stated in Smith’s filing on Tuesday.
Woodward strongly criticized Smith’s filing, accusing him of attempting to influence the judge and the court of public opinion by quoting from a sealed document that Woodward had previously submitted.
In response to Smith’s concerns about potential conflicts of interest, Woodward filed a new document in federal court, vehemently defending himself and his representation of Nauta and other witnesses in the case. However, it is worth noting that Woodward no longer represents Taveras.
Donald Trump, Walt Nauta, and Mar-a-Lago maintenance worker Carlos De Oliveira face charges related to the retention of classified documents after Trump’s presidency. They have all pleaded not guilty.
Among the allegations is a scheme to erase surveillance security footage at Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s private club in Palm Beach, Florida, which shows Nauta and De Oliveira moving boxes of classified records. Trump’s political action committee is covering Nauta’s legal fees, according to publicly available election commission filings.
Woodward disputes the claim that he currently has a conflict of interest and has requested a week to submit a detailed rebuttal to Judge Aileen Cannon. He also revealed that Smith’s disclosure of the Taveras situation has led to threats and disparaging messages directed at him.
De Oliveira is accused of asking Taveras to delete the footage at Trump’s request.
In a document filed by Smith on Tuesday, concerns were raised about Woodward’s potential conflict of interest as he may have to cross-examine his former client, Taveras. Smith highlighted that Woodward was Taveras’ attorney during his testimony before a grand jury in Washington, D.C., in March. Taveras repeatedly denied any knowledge or recollection of conversations involving the security footage at Mar-a-Lago during that testimony.
After being notified by Smith’s office about the grand jury investigation into potential perjury committed during his testimony, Taveras expressed a desire to no longer be represented by Woodward. Immediately after acquiring a public defender as his new lawyer, Taveras retracted his previous false testimony and provided information implicating Nauta, De Oliveira, and Trump in efforts to delete security camera footage, as outlined in the superseding indictment.
Smith requested a hearing regarding Woodward’s alleged conflict of interests, with independent counsel available for his clients, in order to address the matter.
In his Friday filing, Woodward asserted that Smith has not alleged any actual conflicts in his representation of Nauta, stating that such conflicts would only arise if Taveras were to testify against Nauta.
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