The Department of Justice has obtained another search warrant for right-wing attorney John Eastman's phone.
Eastman had been trying to reclaim his phone seized by federal investigators in connection with his effort to help Donald Trump overturn his election loss before Jan. 6, 2021, but a federal court canceled a hearing set for next week after the search warrant was issued.
"Given that the Government has affirmed to the Court on the record that a warrant has been issued, the Court finds that Eastman cannot make a good faith argument that an evidentiary issue on the existence of a warrant remains," wrote District Court Judge Robert Brack. "The undersigned will take the Government at its word that the warrant was issued, and the Court’s decision will be based in part on that representation."
The Sept. 6 hearing was vacated in light of that new development, and the judge will consider scheduling another hearing after prosecutors file a second motion in response to Eastman's request.
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FBI agents seized Eastman's phone in June as he was leaving a restaurant in New Mexico, and he has argued that seizure violated his constitutional rights, but a Brack ruled last month the government had a right to obtain the device as part of its investigation into the insurrection.
However, the judge noted that investigators would not go through Eastman's phone until obtaining a second warrant, which the DOJ confirmed in court had been issued, although it's not clear when a search would be conducted.
\u201cJUST IN: A federal court has canceled next week's hearing over John Eastman's attempt to reclaim his seized cell phone. \n\nDOJ has obtained a second search warrant in the matter, undercutting Eastman's position, the judge noted. https://t.co/yksc5tS4WA\u201d— Kyle Cheney (@Kyle Cheney) 1661873312
