Justice Department Set to Release Redacted Mar-a-Lago Affidavit

The Justice Department on Friday is set to make public a redacted affidavit detailing evidence that led to the FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home, where agents seized more than two dozen boxes, some containing classified documents and other highly sensitive information.

The affidavit, due to be filed in federal court in Florida by noon, is expected to offer new glimpses into the Justice Department’s investigation into Mr. Trump’s handling of classified material and presidential records as well as the government’s justification for the Aug. 8 search.

Justice Department officials, citing national-security concerns and fears of witness intimidation, are expected to have removed sensitive details about tactics and the direction and scope of the probe. But even a redacted document could shed new light on what led to the search, which set off a furious political response and heightened the legal jeopardy for Mr. Trump as he contemplates another White House bid.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart, who approved the warrant to search the Florida complex, on Thursday ordered the government to release the redacted affidavit after advocacy groups and news-media companies, including Dow Jones & Co., the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, petitioned the court earlier this month to make the document public.