Inside Judge Aileen Cannon's Power to Stop Trump From Going to Prison

U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon, who is overseeing Donald Trump's classified documents case, may be able to help the former president avoid jail time, according to legal experts.

Trump was indicted by a federal grand jury on 37 counts related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. The charges include willful intention of classified documents, withholding a document or record, conspiracy to obstruct justice, scheme to conceal, concealing documents in a federal investigation and making false statements. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The indictment states that Trump was in possession of documents that "included information regarding defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries; United States nuclear programs; potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack; and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack."

Neama Rahmani, the president of West Coast Trial Lawyers and a former federal prosecutor, told Newsweek on Wednesday that following the Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Booker, "sentencing guidelines are only advisory, not mandatory."

"There is no mandatory minimum sentence for any of the counts in the indictment, so Judge Cannon would be free to deviate from the guidelines and impose a lesser sentence, including a sentence of no prison time and probation," Rahmani said.

On the other hand, Andrew Lieb, a legal political analyst and attorney at Lieb at Law told Newsweek that "If Trump is found guilty, he will be sentenced based on the considerations listed in 18 USC 3553, which focuses on "the nature and circumstances of the offense" and the defendant's characteristics."

"In that vein, Judge Cannon will look to the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, as a guidepost, because they are to be given serious consideration pursuant to the SCOTUS decision of Gall v. U.S. However, these sentencing guidelines are only advisory and Judge Cannon can depart from these guidelines if such departure is based on serious consideration," Lieb said.

Based on the sentencing guidelines, Trump could be facing up to 22 years in federal prison "if convicted under the Espionage Act, which is the highest listed offense in the indictment," according to Lieb.

Newsweek reached out to Trump's spokesperson via email for comment.