Donald Trump’s cell phone activity around the time of the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot is going to be put under the microscope at his upcoming trial, according to court documents filed Monday.
Special Counsel Jack Smith said an expert has reviewed data from a White House cell phone used by Trump and evidence will be presented to the jury about how the former president used the device on and around the day his supporters stormed the Capitol.
The filing was made as part of the Justice Department’s election interference case against Trump, with Smith disclosing that he plans to call the expert witness to discuss the data on phones belonging to Trump and another unnamed individual. The prosecutor said the expert will testify as to how the phones were used in the post-election period, including by disclosing information about images on the devices, which websites they visited, and when Trump’s cell was used to access Twitter on the day of the Capitol riot.
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That proposed testimony may be helpful to the DOJ, for example, in establishing whether or not Trump personally sent or approved a tweet attacking his then-Vice President Mike Pence as the riot unfolded. The degree to which Smith had access to the phone’s communications—which may have been protected by executive privilege or other restrictions—remains unclear.
The filing also noted that two other expert witnesses are expected to be called at the trial, which is currently scheduled to begin March 4. One of the experts created a map using Google location history data to track how individuals moved toward the Capitol on Jan. 6 after listening to Trump’s speech at the Ellipse, Smith wrote. The other will provide further context as to how the location data is gathered and used.
Smith’s filing came after he on Monday asked the Supreme Court to weigh in on the issue of whether or not Trump had absolute presidential immunity to protect him from prosecution in the federal election interference case. The high court almost immediately granted the prosecutor’s request for expedited consideration, meaning the nine-judge panel will determine much faster than usual whether or not to accept the case.
