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A4 U.S. NEWS
Wednesday 16 august 2023
Mar-a-Lago property manager pleads not guilty to charges

By CURT ANDERSON and guilty. The former president
ALANNA DURKIN RICHER has denied any wrongdo-
FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) — ing. De Oliveira, Trump and
Mar-a-Lago property man- Nauta are facing charges
ager Carlos De Oliveira that include conspiracy
pleaded not guilty on Tues- to obstruct justice in the
day to scheming with Don- case stemming from secret
ald Trump to try to delete government documents
security footage sought by found at Mar-a-Lago after
investigators probing the Trump’s presidency ended
former president’s hoard- in 2021. De Oliveira is also
ing of classified documents. charged with lying to in-
An attorney for De Oliveira vestigators. Prosecutors al-
entered the plea on his be- lege he falsely claimed he
half during a brief hearing in hadn’t even seen boxes
the Fort Pierce, Florida, fed- moved into Mar-a-Lago
eral court, where Trump is after Trump left the White
charged with illegally hold- House.
ing onto top-secret records The trial is scheduled to be-
at his Palm Beach club and gin in May in front of U.S. Dis-
thwarting government ef- trict Judge Aileen Cannon.
forts to retrieve them. If the date holds, it would
It’s the third court appear- Carlos De Oliveira, center, property manager of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago follow close on the heels
ance for De Oliveira, who estate, leaves the Alto Lee Adams Sr. U.S. Courthouse following his arraignment hearing, Tuesday, of a separate New York
twice before had his ar- Aug. 15, 2023, in Fort Pierce, Fla. Associated Press trial for Trump on dozens of
raignment postponed be- state charges of falsifying
cause he hadn’t yet final- speaking to reporters. Trump and his valet, Walt brought more charges business records in connec-
ized a Florida-based at- De Oliveira’s arraignment Nauta, were originally against Trump and Nauta, tion with an alleged hush
torney, which is required comes a day after Trump charged in June in one of and added De Oliveira to money payment to a porn
under court rules. was charged in a fourth two cases brought by spe- the Florida case. Trump is actor.
De Oliveira spoke only to criminal case. Monday cial counsel Jack Smith. facing dozens of felony The allegations in the latest
answer the magistrate night Trump and 18 allies Smith has also charged Re- counts in the classified doc- indictment focus on securi-
judge’s questions, such as were indicted in a case out publican Trump in Washing- uments case, and Smith’s ty footage prosecutors say
whether he understood the of Fulton County, Georgia, ton with illegally conspiring new indictment included Trump tried to have delet-
charges against him. De over alleged efforts by him to overturn his 2020 elec- additional counts of ob- ed after investigators sent
Oliveira and his new attor- and his supporters to illegal- tion loss to Democrat Joe struction and willful reten- a subpoena for it in June
ney, Donnie Murrell of West ly meddle in the 2020 elec- Biden. tion of national defense in- 2022. Prosecutors have not
Palm Beach, walked out tion in that state. An updated indicted un- formation. Trump and Nau- alleged the footage was
of the courthouse without In the Mar-a-Lago case, sealed late last month ta have also pleaded not actually deleted. q

Texas wants Planned Parenthood to repay millions of dollars

By PAUL J. WEBER the first of its kind brought common method of abor- as removed the organiza- last year by Republican
Associated Press by a state against the larg- tion in the U.S. in limbo with tion from the state’s Medic- Texas Attorney General Ken
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas est abortion provider in the a ruling that invalidated aid program in 2021. Paxton, who is now tempo-
wants Planned Parenthood U.S. approval of the abortion Texas had begun trying rarily suspended from office
to give back millions of dol- A hearing was set for Tues- pill mifepristone. to oust Planned Parent- pending the outcome of
lars in Medicaid reimburse- day in front of U.S. District The case now before him hood four years earlier and his impeachment trial next
ments and pay far more Judge Matthew Kacs- in America’s biggest red is seeking repayment for month over accusations of
in fines on top of that in a maryk, who earlier this year state does not surround services billed during that bribery and abuse of office.
lawsuit that appears to be put access to the most abortion, which has been time. Spokespersons for the of-
banned in Texas since the “This baseless case is an fice did not return a mes-
U.S. Supreme Court over- active effort to shut down sage seeking comment
turned Roe v. Wade last Planned Parenthood Monday. Last year, Paxton
year. But Planned Parent- health centers,” said Alexis said it was “unthinkable
hood argues the attempt McGill Johnson, president that Planned Parenthood
to recoup at least $17 mil- of Planned Parenthood would continue to take ad-
lion in Medicaid payments Federation of America. vantage of funding know-
for health services, includ- Texas brought the lawsuit ing they were not entitled
ing cancer screenings, is a under the federal False to keep it.”
new effort to weaken the Claims Act, which allows Jacob Elberg, a former
organization after years of fines for every alleged im- federal prosecutor who
Republican-led laws that proper payment. Planned specialized in health care
stripped funding and im- Parenthood says that could fraud, described Texas’ ar-
posed restrictions on how result in a judgement in ex- gument as weak.
its clinics operate. cess of $1 billion. He called the False Claims

A sign greets patients at a Planned Parenthood facility in Austin, At issue is money Planned It is not clear when Kacs- Act the government’s
Texas, Monday, Aug. 14, 2023. Parenthood received for maryk will rule. most powerful tool against
Associated Press health services before Tex- The lawsuit was announced health fraud. q