A former Florida solicitor general will defend former President Donald Trump in the criminal case involving hundreds of confiscated documents from his Mar-a-Lago home.
Chris Kise is listed as working with Foley & Lardner as the co-chair of the firm’s Appellate Practice, according to the firm’s website preview. However, his profile page on the website has been removed. He has also worked in the Florida Office of the Governor as both a counselor and general counsel, according to Bloomberg.
Trump’s defense selection comes days after a redacted affidavit justifying the FBI raid was unsealed under the order of Florida Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart. During the raid, authorities confiscated 26 boxes that held classified and “top secret” documents, the Washington Examiner previously reported.
‘C’MON’: BIDEN SCOFFS AT TRUMP’S MAR-A-LAGO DEFENSE
Trump has filed a motion in court hoping to block the Department of Justice from looking at the documents. He is also seeking the appointment of a special master to review the seized documents.
The former solicitor general has argued four cases before the Supreme Court during his career and argued on behalf of Florida from 2003 to 2006, the Tampa Bay Times reported. He began conversations with Trump shortly after the FBI seized the documents on Aug. 8, according to NBC News.
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Several attorneys have declined to take up the defense for various reasons, such as fearing backlash from Trump’s advisers and other political leaders. Others in the political sphere also created distance from the former president following the raid, with the Republican National Committee, which often bankrolls Trump’s attorney’s fees, making good on a threat to pull its financial backing of his legal costs by refusing to cover Trump’s costs related to the Mar-a-Lago incident.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Kise for comment.
