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Articles on Classified information

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Former President Donald Trump was on the campaign trail in early June 2023, as an investigation continued that led to his indictment on federal charges. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

Trump charged under Espionage Act – which covers a lot more crimes than just spying

Spy cases are rare. More typically, as in the Trump indictment, the act applies to the unauthorized gathering, possessing or transmitting of certain sensitive government information.
A Department of Justice photo shows of documents seized during its Mar-a-Lago search. Department of Justice via Associated Press

Trump faces possible obstruction of justice charges for concealing classified government documents – 2 important things to know about what this means

A government filing on August 30, 2022, alleges that efforts were likely taken “to obstruct the government’s investigation” into classified documents held at Donald Trump’s Florida home.
Former President Donald Trump, at the Conservative Political Action Conference, Aug. 6, 2022, in Dallas. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

You don’t have to be a spy to violate the Espionage Act – and other crucial facts about the law Trump may have broken

Two national security law experts explain how the Espionage Act isn’t only about international intrigue, and share other important points about the law that was invoked in a search of Trump’s estate.
A police officer drives by Mar-a-Lago on August 9, 2022. Giorgio Viera/AFP via Getty Images

Unsealed court documents show the FBI was looking for evidence Trump violated the Espionage Act and other laws – here’s how the documents seized show possible wrongdoing

A legal scholar analyzes the unsealed warrant for the FBI’s recent search of Donald Trump’s home and the list of materials seized there. The implications for Trump are potentially grave.
Palm Beach police officers stand near the Florida home of former President Donald Trump on Aug. 8, 2022. Eva Marie Uzcategui/Getty Images

Why searching an ex-president’s estate is not easily done – 4 important things to know about the FBI’s search of Mar-a-Lago

There’s a high bar for a federal judge to grant a search warrant, indicating there is probable cause that Trump committed a crime by holding classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leaves Southwark Crown Court in London, May 1, 2019. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

Assange’s new indictment: Espionage and the First Amendment

Julian Assange’s indictment under the Espionage Act, a sweeping law with heavy penalties for unauthorized receiving or disclosing of classified information, poses a threat to press freedom.
Donald Trump is famously attached to his phone. AP Photo/Matt Rourke

How to secure a smartphone for the tweeter-in-chief

The best way to protect a presidential device is to keep it off the internet altogether. If that’s not going to happen, how else can such a sensitive gadget be kept safe?
Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to the General Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church during their annual convention at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 8, 2016. Charles Mostoller/Reuters

How did classified information get into those Hillary Clinton emails?

An academic who used to hold top secret security clearance explains how things get classified and why the Clinton email scandal is hard to nail down.

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