Trump pleads not guilty twice to new charges in classified documents case

The filing marked the second time in 24 hours that the former president entered a not-guilty plea, following his arraignment on August 3 in the special counsel’s separate investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, CNN reports.

Last week, Smith charged Trump, who had already faced 37 criminal charges in the classified documents case, with one additional count of willful retention of national defence information and two additional obstruction counts. He also filed new charges against Walt Nauta, the former president’s aide, and added Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira to the case.

Trump and Nauta had pleaded not guilty to the initial charges earlier this summer.

With the new fling, Trump indicated to the court that he would not be physically present for an arraignment on the new superseding indictment scheduled for August 10 before a US magistrate judge in Fort Pierce, Florida.

Trump’s co-defendants, De Oliveira and Nauta, have not indicated in court filings their plans for the arraignment.