Former President Donald Trump is reportedly planning to sue the Department of Justice over the August 2022 raid on his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida.
Trump's legal team alleges that the raid was "unconstitutional" and that there was "clear intent to engage in political persecution."
Fox News obtained a memo from the legal team alleging "tortious conduct by the United States against President Trump."
The raid ultimately led to Special Counsel Jack Smith bringing 37 felony charges against Trump, which included conspiracy to obstruct justice and willful retention of national defense information. The former president pleaded "not guilty" to all charges.
Last month, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the case entirely, saying Smith was unlawfully appointed and funded under the Constitution's Appointments Clause.
"Trump attorney Daniel Epstein filed the notice to sue the Justice Department," the Fox report explains. "The Justice Department has 180 days from the date of receipt to respond to Epstein's notice and come to a resolution. If no resolution is made, Trump's case will move to federal court in the Southern District of Florida."
The filing alleges "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." Epstein added that the actions of the FBI and DOJ are "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."
Epstein's filing goes on to state that Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray's actions were not based on "social, economic, and political policy" but instead, in "clear dereliction of constitutional principles, inconsistent standards as applied to" Trump and a "clear intent to engage in political persecution – not to advance good law enforcement practices."
"Garland and Wray should have never approved a raid and subsequent indictment of President Trump because the well-established protocol with former U.S. presidents is to use non-enforcement means to obtain records of the United States," Epstein wrote. "But notwithstanding the fact that the raid should have never occurred, Garland and Wray should have ensured their agents sought consent from President Trump, notified his lawyers, and sought cooperation."
The filing states in no uncertain terms, "Garland and Wray decided to stray from established protocol to injure President Trump," and the "abuse of process" used against the Republican presidential nominee was "unconstitutional and aimed at politically persecuting the former President, which led to extensive legal costs and negative consequences for him."
Epstein told Fox Business, "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."
"You have clear evidence that the FBI failed to follow protocols, and the failure to follow protocols shows that there was an improper purpose," Epstein continued. "If the government is able to say, well, we don't like someone, we can raid their home, we can violate their privacy, we can breach protocols when we decide to prosecute them, we can use the process to advance our personal motive--not a motive of justice--if someone doesn't stand against that in a very public way and seek to obtain and protect their rights, then the government will have a mandate to roughshod over every American."
