Helen Saulnier 
The US justice division said on Wednesday it experienced obtained a warrant to search the cell phone of Donald Trump’s election attorney, John Eastman, who spoke at a rally just before the January 6 assault on the US Capitol.
Federal agents seized Eastman’s cell phone in June based mostly on a warrant authorizing them to take the machine. They desired a next warrant to look for the phone’s contents.
In a filing with US district court docket in New Mexico, the assistant US legal professional Thomas Windom reported the US district court docket for the District of Columbia issued a look for warrant on 12 July authorizing critique of the phone’s contents and guide screen capture.
He mentioned federal agents in northern Virginia had the cellphone and screenshots of some of its contents.
Eastman has been below intensive scrutiny in the investigations into the attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters immediately after the former president falsely claimed that he experienced received the 2020 election. Eastman spoke at the rally in which Trump gave a fiery speech alleging election fraud and urging supporters to march on the Capitol.
Eastman also wrote a memo outlining how, in his look at, Mike Pence could thwart official congressional certification of Trump’s re-election loss. The then vice-president declined to comply with Eastman’s information.
Wednesday’s filing was made in New Mexico mainly because Eastman had formerly filed a match there asking a decide to purchase the justice department to return the telephone, wipe out data and block investigators from accessing the cellular phone.
The choose denied that ask for but requested the federal government to update the court docket by Wednesday on the site of the cellphone and position of a second research warrant.
A representative for Eastman was not quickly available for remark.
