Federal prosecutors have told the legal team for former President Donald Trump that he is a “target of their investigation” into his handling of classified documents after leaving office, according to a report.
The New York Times reported Wednesday that the notification from Special Counsel Jack Smith was the “clearest signal yet that the former president is likely to face charges in the investigation.” The report said:
It remained unclear when Mr. Trump’s team was told that he was a target of the special counsel’s inquiry, but the notice suggested that prosecutors working for Mr. Smith had largely completed their investigation and were moving toward bringing an indictment.
…
Notifying a potential defendant that he or she is a target is a formal way of indicating that the person is a direct focus of a criminal investigation and often precedes the filing of charges. The notification typically opens the door to defense lawyers requesting a meeting with prosecutors to offer their side of the story.
