司法部拒绝给予前特别顾问杰克·史密斯在总统唐纳德·特朗普针对BBC的100亿美元诽谤诉讼中作证的许可。
The Justice Department has refused to give former special counsel Jack Smith permission to testify in President Donald Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC.
该广播公司希望质询史密斯关于他在调查特朗普试图挑战2020年选举结果时收集的证据，但在周一晚提交的一封信中，司法部表示这可能暴露大陪审团机密和机密信息，并认为史密斯对1月6日美国国会大厦袭击事件的了解是“二手的”。司法部律师帕迪斯·盖比写道：“任何所谓的‘需要’此类二手知识都不能超过部门在维护受执法特权和行政特权保护的材料机密性方面的重大利益。”
The broadcaster wants to question Smith about evidence he gathered while investigating Trump’s efforts to contest the 2020 election, but in a letter filed Monday night, the Justice Department said that could expose grand jury secrets and classified information, and argued Smith’s knowledge of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol was “secondhand.”“Any purported ‘need’ for such second-hand knowledge cannot outweigh the Department’s significant interest in preserving the confidentiality of materials subject to law enforcement privilege and executive privilege,” Justice Department lawyer Pardis Gheibi wrote.
地方法官恩乔利克·莱特已裁定史密斯拥有与特朗普1月6日演讲及随后国会大厦袭击相关的信息。
Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Lett has already ruled that Smith has information relevant to Trump’s speech on Jan. 6 and the subsequent Capitol attack.
特朗普在12月因一部将他在国会大厦骚乱前的两段演讲合并的纪录片而起诉BBC，指控BBC的剪辑错误地暗示他鼓励了袭击。BBC认为史密斯的证据可能显示特朗普促成了暴力。
Trump sued the BBC in December over a documentary that combined two parts of his speech that preceded the Capitol riot, alleging the BBC’s edit falsely suggested he encouraged the attack. The BBC argued Smith’s evidence could show that Trump helped cause the violence.
BBC已将针对特朗普的诉讼转变为在发现程序中寻求记录的机会。
The BBC has turned the lawsuit against Trump into an opportunity to seek records as part of the discovery process.
该广播公司还指出，司法部上个月允许史密斯在参议院司法委员会前作证。
The broadcaster also noted that the Justice Department allowed Smith to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee last month.