DOJ opposes release of affidavit used to search Trump's Mar-a-Lago home

The Department of Justice said Monday in a court filing that it opposes requests to unseal the affidavit used to obtain a federal judge's permission to search former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence.

Driving the news: In a court filing, prosecutors said releasing the affidavit can "harm the government's ongoing criminal investigation."

• They won't, however, oppose the release of other sealed documents tied to the search, including cover sheets and the government's motion to seal.
• The Justice Department's opposition came in response to several news organizations' requests to unseal the affidavit.

What they're saying: "If disclosed, the affidavit would serve as a road map to the government's ongoing investigation, providing specific details about its direction and likely course, in a manner that is highly likely to compromise future investigative steps," U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez and Justice Department counterintelligence chief Jay I. Bratt said in the filing.

• The document has sensitive information about witnesses, prosecutors said, particularly given the high-profile nature of the matter and "the risk that the revelation of witness identities would impact their willingness to cooperate with the investigation."
• The DOJ did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.

Catch up quick: The search warrant at Mar-a-Lago was carried out last Monday as part of an ongoing DOJ investigation into the discovery of classified White House records recovered from Trump’s home earlier this year.

• On Thursday, the Justice Department announced it had filed a motion to unseal parts of the search warrant for Trump's Florida residence.
• Trump said he did not oppose the warrant being publicly released.

Go deeper: Trump: "Temperature has to be brought down" after Mar-a-Lago search

Editor's note: This story has been updated with new details throughout.