The Supreme Court rejected an appeal brought by Elon Musk’s social media company, X, regarding prosecutors obtaining data from former President Donald Trump’s Twitter account without his knowledge. The case arose from special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into alleged election interference by Trump in 2020, which was stymied by the Supreme Court earlier this year when it ruled that presidents have immunity from prosecution for official acts during office. The court upheld a ruling in favor of prosecutors, allowing them to access the data. X’s lawyers argued that Trump should have been notified before his data was handed over to the government, claiming it violated free speech rights. The government obtained the data in question through a warrant under the Stored Communications Act, with a nondisclosure order preventing X from informing Trump. X initially resisted and faced penalties before complying, which was upheld by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. During the litigation, Smith agreed that Trump could be notified about the warrant. The case did not involve Trump directly, and the Supreme Court’s decision allows prosecutors to access data without notifying the individual involved.
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