# FBI Search and Seizure at Trump's Mar-A-Lago Residence, August 8, 2022, Case Dismissed July 15, 2024 **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [August 8, 2022, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329 "2022-08-08T23:18:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 247
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4921 "2023-06-06T12:50:38Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > hasn’t been charged with jack fucking shit, never mind a trial. And this is my fear - that he’ll magically skate through all of this untouched and his supporters will feel vindicated and emboldened. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4922 "2023-06-06T13:04:45Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > “I think that maybe, possibly, someday, somebody should pay higher taxes.” Trumpers: “I’ma assume he means the libruls and the coloreds. Yee haw!” ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4923 "2023-06-06T13:10:47Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I don’t quite understand the reasoning, but it’s not unheard of to have the pool equipment in your basement. Come to think of it, it’s an expensive resort. It probably has an indoor pool with indoor equipment. Yebbut - any building that close to the coast will not have a basement - unless you want an unintentional indoor pool. > [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > > [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > > > A thought exercise: is there _anything_ he could say that would drive them away? > > Trump: « I’ve concluded that Joe Biden is right on most issues. » > > Trumpeters : « The Deep State got to him. They’re making him say that. » Ah - like the time he tried to encourage his followers to get vaccinated. After Biden made a big show of gratitude to his administration for getting the vaccine ball rolling. Suddenly he became the sole inventor of the vaccine… until he was booed for mentioning it. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4924 "2023-06-06T14:05:31Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > A thought exercise: is there _anything_ he could say that would drive them away? Well, they **did** boo him when he said they should get vaccinated. Obviously they still stuck with him but many of his supporters clearly didn’t like that. If he suddenly sounded rational and said things that were responsible and helpful, I suspect he’d be done politically and that would be the end of MAGA. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4925 "2023-06-06T14:30:48Z")
Re: the drained swimming pool/flooded server room Ignoring for the moment that it’s hard to imagine there’s no offsite (eg, cloud) storage/backup … I took a look at the **[Federal rules for Spoliation - 33pp PDF](https://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1789&context=hlr#:~:text=Spoliation%20is%20%22%5Bt%5Dhe,of%20evidence%20to%20be%20unavailable.)** (“The destruction or alteration of evidence resulting from a party’s failure to preserve evidence relevant to a litigation or investigation.”) If there is spoliation of evidence – as it appears we have here – then there’s often an “adverse inference” jury instruction given, telling the jury – in effect – that they may feel free to assume that the evidence destroyed would have been painfully unfavorable to the defendant. [NB: Assume the worst? About Trump? Can you imagine …?] In some jurisdictions, IIRC, this sanction is dependent on a judge’s determination of bad faith. It doesn’t appear that this is the case in the Federal Courts – it may not depend at all on the defendant’s state of mind: > Instead, it is the relationship between the degree of prejudice suffered by the innocent party and the mindset of the responsible party when engaging in the destructive acts that is controlling in the imposition of spoliation sanctions on a party. These countervailing factors are balanced in order to determine an appropriate sanction in particular circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4926 "2023-06-06T14:57:48Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > Do they have basements in Florida? > [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > any building that close to the coast will not have a basement - unless you want an unintentional indoor pool. So pretend like I didn’t say basement, but rather just that it’s not unheard of to have pool equipment indoors. And not that I want to defend them, but it could have even been something like the equipment being outside, but physically near the server room or, if I had to guess, they drained it too fast (perhaps on purpose), overwhelming the drain lines and it simply backed up into the server room (maybe it’s the lowest on the property). Or more likely it’s just BS, someone deleted the date, broke the server and dumped some water on the floor to make it look like their was a flood. In any case, my reply to Railer13 wasn’t to say that’s what happened, just that it’s not unheard of. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4927 "2023-06-06T15:30:29Z")
According to this article, Mar-a-Lago has three basements, which are at or near sea level. > **[Mar-a-Lago - American Architectural Treasure, Steel-Driven into a Massive...](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/8/23/2118331/-Mar-a-Lago-American-Architectural-Treasure-Steel-Driven-into-a-Massive-Coral-Reef-by-Mary-Hess)** > > There are no real “basements” in the State of Florida, unless they are in the “sand-hills” of Tallahassee. Most of the State of Florida lies at (or below) sea level. The various “Hills of Florida” are 345 feet above sea level, and much lower, and... ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4928 "2023-06-06T15:40:12Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > And not that I want to defend them, but it could have even been something like the equipment being outside, but physically near the server room or, if I had to guess, they drained it too fast (perhaps on purpose), overwhelming the drain lines and it simply backed up into the server room (maybe it’s the lowest on the property). This is Trump we’re talking about. He could find a way to drain a swimming pool and flood an attic. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4929 "2023-06-06T15:56:08Z")
> [@Ann\_Hedonia](#): > > According to this article, Mar-a-Lago has three basements, which are at or near sea level. Color me surprised. I’m going to have to take back my criticism of _Day of the Dead_ for being set in an underground military facilitiy in Florida. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4930 "2023-06-06T15:56:23Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > > [@Odesio](#): > > > > Do they have basements in Florida? > > > [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > > > any building that close to the coast will not have a basement - unless you want an unintentional indoor pool. > > So pretend like I didn’t say basement, but rather just that it’s not unheard of to have pool equipment indoors. > And not that I want to defend them, but it could have even been something like the equipment being outside, but physically near the server room or, if I had to guess, they drained it too fast (perhaps on purpose), overwhelming the drain lines and it simply backed up into the server room (maybe it’s the lowest on the property). > > Or more likely it’s just BS, someone deleted the date, broke the server and dumped some water on the floor to make it look like their was a flood. > In any case, my reply to Railer13 wasn’t to say that’s what happened, just that it’s not unheard of. It’s almost certainly BS. All the pools I’ve worked at had a separate drainage system, often into a storm sewer. When you drain a pool, or even backwash the filters, a shit load of water gets dumped, and there is no way a six inch sewer pipe would be able to handle it. It would take a plumbing error of catastrophic proportions and a miracle for a pool draining to affect a server room. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4931 "2023-06-06T15:57:17Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > Yes, unless he were convicted of something related to his online activity it would be rare to impose such a limitation beyond the time of incarceration. At the very least can we hope that the judge can impose some restrictions on profiting from his crimes like they did with the [January 6th crew](https://apnews.com/article/capitol-riot-fundraisers-fines-clawback-justice-department-3490da93a6bea505e76bd249eeab72ba)? ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4932 "2023-06-06T16:01:18Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > It’s almost certainly BS. All the pools I’ve worked at had a separate drainage system, often into a storm sewer. When you drain a pool, or even backwash the filters, a shit load of water gets dumped, and there is no way a six inch sewer pipe would be able to handle it. It would take a plumbing error of catastrophic proportions and a miracle for a pool draining to affect a server room. I too am struggling with the logistics of this. Either (most likely) it’s all bullshit, or Mar-A-Lago is _spectacularly_ badly designed and cheaply built (less likely but still plausible). Presumably they could be made to explain with diagrams and photos and the reanimated corpse of Rose Mary Woods exactly how this happened. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4933 "2023-06-06T16:05:20Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > This is Trump we’re talking about. He could find a way to drain a swimming pool and flood an attic. haaaaa, hah, ha,ha. And of course we ALL know that the best place for data servers is in a warm moist envionment. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4934 "2023-06-06T16:11:41Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > > [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > > > This is Trump we’re talking about. He could find a way to drain a swimming pool and flood an attic. > > haaaaa, hah, ha,ha. And of course we ALL know that the best place for data servers is in a warm moist envionment. - Keeps data soft and supple. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4935 "2023-06-06T16:13:22Z")
_Moist._ ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4936 "2023-06-06T16:22:27Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > He is their messiah – remember 5th Avenue? Oh, the Deep State has suppressed that, just the way they did news of the Bowling Green massacre. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4937 "2023-06-06T16:24:56Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > I too am struggling with the logistics of this. Either (most likely) it’s all bullshit, or Mar-A-Lago is _spectacularly_ badly designed and cheaply built (less likely but still plausible). > > Presumably they could be made to explain with diagrams and photos and the reanimated corpse of Rose Mary Woods exactly how this happened. I may have to amend my analysis a bit. On Google Earth, I count one pool on the property. It looks to be about 20’ x 60’ with a six foot deep end. I worked at swim clubs and rec center pools which all had swim teams, so they were much bigger. Don’t get me wrong - this is a good sized pool, but it is still residential sized. I don’t even see a pump house for it, so the pump and filters can’t be very big. That said, it would still have to drain downhill, which would be towards the putting green it looks like. In short - my initial assessment of the amount of water the pool would drain was off by quite a bit, but the water would still have to either flow uphill or a hose pipe would be needed for a pool draining to affect the server room. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4938 "2023-06-06T16:46:33Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > or Mar-A-Lago is _spectacularly_ badly designed and cheaply built Unlikely, because Trump didn’t build it. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4939 "2023-06-06T16:57:54Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > And of course we ALL know that the best place for data servers is in a warm moist environment. And on the floor in said room, not in elevated racks. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329/4940 "2023-06-06T17:00:35Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Moist. OK, what’s up with ‘moist’? I keep hearing/reading people commenting that they hate the word. Due to the ‘moistfully good’ commercials when I was little, I associate ‘moist’ with Dunca Hines cake mix. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329.md?page=246) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-at-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-august-8-2022-case-dismissed-july-15-2024/969329.md?page=248)