Justice Department wants to release only part of its report on Trump cases

The Justice Department wants to publicly release only part of its final report on special counsel Jack Smith's cases against President-elect Donald Trump.

Smith recommended that the DOJ release only the first volume of his final report, covering the investigation and charges against Trump tied to the 2020 presidential election, the DOJ said in a court filing on Wednesday. The second volume — which concerns the federal case against Trump's handling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort — will only be available to review to the top members of the House and Senate judiciary committees if they request it. That's because the classified documents case is still ongoing, with the DOJ pursuing an appeal against two longtime Trump aides, Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, the DOJ said.

"To avoid any risk of prejudice to defendants Nauta and De Oliveira, the Attorney General has determined, at the recommendation of the Special Counsel, that he will not publicly release Volume Two as long as defendants' criminal proceedings remain pending," DOJ lawyers wrote in the filing to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.