Former President Donald Trump will sue the Department of Justice over its raid of his Mar-a-Lago estate for classified documents in 2022, calling it “clear intent to engage in political persecution.”
Trump attorney Daniel Epstein filed the notice to sue the Justice Department, Fox News first reported. The department has 180 days to respond to the notice and come to a resolution. If there is no resolution, the case will head to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
The filing says the “tortious acts against the president are rooted in intrusion upon seclusion, malicious prosecution, and abuse of process resulting from the August 8, 2022 raid of his and his family’s home at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach Florida.”
Mr. Epstein also said how the Justice Department and FBI conducted the raid was “inconsistent with protocols requiring the consent of an investigative target, disclosure to that individual’s attorneys, and the use of the local U.S. Attorney’s Office.”
The Trump team is requesting punitive damages of $100 million.
“What President Trump is doing here is not just standing up for himself — he is standing up for all Americans who believe in the rule of law and believe that you should hold the government accountable when it wrongs you,” Mr. Epstein told Fox Business’ Lydia Hu.
The Justice Department declined to comment for this report.
Mr. Trump’s Palm Beach estate was searched as part of an investigation into his alleged mishandling of classified documents. After much delay, a federal judge in Florida dismissed the case against Mr. Trump last month, saying special counsel Jack Smith, who filed the charges, was improperly appointed by the Justice Department.
The former president celebrated the case being thrown out on his Truth Social account in July, saying the dismissal “should be just the first step” and his other criminal “witch hunt” cases should be thrown out as well.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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