By: Isabella Wong

Recently, Former President Donald Trump was charged with 37 crimes, which include his violation of the Espionage Act. Trump was accused of committing many crimes, including the illegal ownership of documents relating to nuclear attack plans on the United States military. This could compromise America’s military defense plan and put at risk safety for many Americans.

Towards the end of his presidency, Trump had his personal aid, Waltine Nauta, move the many boxes from their original location, the Mar-a-Lago storage room, to his home. Officials say that those records were found in his home in 2022, a year after he left office. Additionally, he shared these significant pieces of information with people that were inadequate to secure such important information. A recording used as evidence showed that Trump was aware of how he was prohibited from releasing details like these after he leaves office.

“The men and women of the United States intelligence community and our armed forces dedicate their lives to protecting our nation and its people. Our laws that protect national defense information are critical to the safety and security of the United States, and they must be enforced,” Jack Smith, investigator of the case, said. “We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone.”

Nauta and Trump claim that “they are trying to ruin his life, like the lives of many others.” However, to others it seems like the two are ruining their own life. Both made false statements claiming that they did not know anything about the records found in Trump’s home. Nauta was found in a surveillance recording, showing him helping a maintenance employee carry boxes of documents from the storage room in Mar-a-Lago. All of this information will be used against the former president in the jury, which will decide whether he is truly innocent or guilty.