• The magistrate must decide whether the public interest in the reasons for the search outweighs the government’s interest in keeping them secret for the time being.
• Prosecutors argue that releasing the affidavit could jeopardize their investigation.
• Media companies are looking to learn more about what prompted this unprecedented research.

The Justice Department filed its proposed affidavit drafts on Thursday that explain the reasons for the unprecedented search of Donald Trump’s Florida estate, but it’s unclear when or if parts of the affidavit will be made public.

“The United States has filed a sealed submission pursuant to the Court’s order,” justice spokesman Anthony Coley said, declining further comment as U.S. Magistrate Bruce Reinhart “considers the matter.”

The redactions have been filed under seal for Reinhart to review, so nothing of the affidavit is public yet. Reinhart ordered the department a week earlier to draft drafting proposals before he potentially unseals part of the document. The affidavit was used to substantiate the August 8 search warrant for Mar-a-Lago, which Reinhart authorized.

Affidavits typically remain sealed until charges are filed, legal experts say. Federal prosecutors oppose the release of Trump’s research affidavit because the document could compromise the investigation and discourage witnesses from cooperating. The redactions would be so extensive that they would render the document useless, prosecutors argued.

Reinhart is still debating whether to keep the entire affidavit sealed or release part of it.

“I have yet to consider whether there is a cheaper alternative to sealing the entire document,” Reinhart said Monday in his written order. “I can’t say at this point that the partial redactions will be so significant that they result in meaningless disclosure, but I may ultimately come to that conclusion after hearing more from the government.”

He set no deadline for deciding how much of the affidavit to unseal.

Media companies, including The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Network, have pleaded for the release of the affidavit to learn more about what prompted the unprecedented search of a former president’s home.

The government also filed its arguments for keeping the affidavit sealed. The media consortium argued in a filing Thursday that the government’s arguments should be made public as they could provide more details about the investigation, although the parties dealing with what is in the affidavit remain sealed.

“At a minimum, all parts of the record that set out these facts about the investigation, without revealing others that are not yet publicly available – in addition to any other part that does not pose a threat to the investigation – should be unsealed,” the media companies argued. . “Furthermore, all legal arguments contained in government documents must be made public, even if some of the facts recounted by the government remain under seal.”

Trump is not part of the lawsuit, but he called for the full affidavit to be released in a social media post. In another case, he asked a federal court to order the return of the documents.

After:Trump’s relentless attacks on Mar-a-Lago research lack context. What he said against what we know.

FBI agents seized 11 sets of classified documents. But prosecutors gave no details about the contents of the documents. The affidavit may shed light on what the FBI agents were looking for and why.

Jay Bratt, a senior official in the Justice Department’s National Security Division, told Reinhart that the document would require such extensive redactions that it “would not significantly edify the public.”

Reinhart told attorneys that the process of reviewing the document and its eventual release would be considerate and careful. Along with concerns about witness intimidation, Reinhart said revealing details about Mar-a-Lago could harm the Secret Service’s ability to protect the former president.