The investigation into the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case took an unexpected turn as Special Counsel Jack Smith and his team admitted to a slip-up in the discovery process. This revelation has led them to take immediate steps to rectify the situation. The development comes as a superseding indictment was recently filed, adding new charges against former President Donald Trump and a new co-defendant.

In the superseding indictment, Trump now faces three additional felony counts for allegedly instructing Carlos De Oliveira, the property manager at Mar-a-Lago, to find a way to delete surveillance footage that had been requested by the Department of Justice (DOJ). De Oliveira, along with Trump’s valet, Walt Nauta, has been named as a co-defendant in the case. These charges add to the over 30 felony counts Trump already faces for supposedly willfully mishandling classified documents in violation of the Espionage Act.

This marks a historic moment, as it represents the first time a former president in U.S. history is facing criminal charges. Trump and Nauta pleaded not guilty to the initial charges, with Trump claiming that the investigation is politically motivated and aimed at derailing his potential 2024 presidential campaign.

The revelation of the slip-up came in the form of a letter signed by Special Counsel Jack Smith and his team. In the letter, they explained that additional materials, including surveillance footage, were “mistakenly” not provided to Trump’s legal team during the discovery process. The error was discovered as they were preparing to submit the superseding indictment.

The government had obtained the footage from the Trump Organization in response to a grand jury subpoena served in April. However, it was not processed and uploaded to the platform established for the defense to view the subpoenaed footage. This mistake was acknowledged after the government had previously stated in court that all necessary files had been turned over.

The superseding indictment also referred to “Trump Employee 4,” who was later identified as Yuscil Taveras, the Mar-a-Lago employee in charge of security cameras. Taveras was allegedly asked by De Oliveira if the security footage could be deleted and was advised that “the boss” wanted it done.

Interestingly, despite receiving a target letter in the case, Taveras has not been named as a co-defendant. Legal experts speculate that this may be due to Taveras cooperating with investigators, potentially providing incriminating evidence against the other defendants.

The admission of the discovery process error has raised questions about the handling of the case and the impact it may have on the overall proceedings. It remains to be seen how this slip-up will affect the trial and whether it will lead to any delays or changes in strategy for the prosecution and defense.