Courtroom sketches of Cole Tomas Allen.
Courtesy: Dana Verkouteren
Cole Tomas Allen on Thursday waived his right to challenge his detention in jail — for now — on charges of trying to assassinate President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner last Saturday night.
Allen’s waiver was a reversal of the defense team’s intention to challenge his detention, which was announced in a court filing on Wednesday night.
“He’s conceding detention at this time,” Allen’s lawyer, Tezira Abe, told Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya, during a hearing Thursday in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia.
Abe told Upadhyaya that she and Allen’s other lawyer had difficulty meeting with the defendant over the past several days, but spoke to him on Thursday morning before the hearing.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office in a court filing on Wednesday had urged Upadhyaya to keep the 31-year-old California resident locked up without bond pending trial on charge of trying to assassinate Trump, transportation of a firearm or ammunition in interstate commerce, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence.
Upadhyaya on Thursday addressed Allen, asking him to confirm that his lawyers had informed him of “the consequences of conceding to detention at this time.”
“Yes, your honor,” Allen answered in a hushed tone.
During Thursday’s hearing, after Allen confirmed to the judge that he was waiving his right to challenge his detention, Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Jones asked Upadhyaya to be allowed to continue to present evidence in support of that motion because the defendant can revisit the issue in the future.
“What audience is your supplemental information for?” Upadhyaya asked. “I have noted that he concedes to detention … what is the purpose of the government putting additional information on the record?”
Jones replied that he wanted to offer the evidence on Thursday because it was efficient.
“That is a completely inefficient way of proceeding,” the judge shot back, noting that if Allen challenged his detention in the future, prosecutors would have to present evidence to a federal district court judge to rebut it.
“You would be doing your exact same presentation all over again,” Upadhyaya said, who appeared irritated by the prosecutor’s request.
“I’m denying the government’s request. It’s truly unprecedented,” the judge said.
— MS Now’s Fallon Gallager contributed to this article
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