US Judge Orders Trump Lawyers Not to Release Any Materials in Classified Documents Probe

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - A US judge has ordered the lawyers of former President Donald Trump not to release any materials in the ongoing classified documents probe to the media or members of the public, a court order showed on Monday.

"The Discovery Materials, along with any information derived therefrom, shall not be disclosed to the public or the news media, or disseminated on any news or social media platform, without prior notice to and consent of the United States or approval of the Court," US Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart said in a court order.

The order emphasizes that the discovery materials include "all non-classified" documents. It also stipulates that none of the materials can be copied or reproduced or shared with any witnesses testifying in the case.

Moreover, within 90 days of the conclusion of the case, all documents must either be destroyed or returned to the US government, according to the order.

Prosecutors in the case have charged Trump with 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information, one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, one count of withholding a document or record, one count of corruptly concealing a document or record, one count of concealing a document in a federal investigation, scheming to conceal, and making false statements and representation.

Trump has pleaded 'not guilty' to the 37 criminal charges he faces.

According to the indictment, the classified documents Trump stored in boxes at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida included information about defense and weapons capabilities of both the US and foreign countries, US nuclear programs, potential vulnerabilities of the US and its allies to military attack, and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack.