TRUMP INDICTED: Former President, allies charged in Fulton County election probe
Trump, 18 others hit with RICO charges in election probe
Former President Donald Trump has been indicted for a fourth time, this time for attempting to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election results.
Trump, along with 18 allies, are facing a 41-count indictment according to a court document unsealed late Monday night. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is giving all 19 defendants until noon on Friday, August 25 to surrender.
Who else was charged?
Many of those who paid close attention to the aftermath of the 2020 election will recognize some of the names on the indictment. They mainly include key members of the former President’s legal team and most of the Trump supporters who falsely signed an electoral certificate claiming that Trump won Georgia in 2020. Here are the 18 other co-defendants.
Rudy Giuliani, Trump lawyer and former New York Mayor
Mark Meadows, former White House chief of staff
John Eastman, Trump lawyer
Kenneth Chesebro, pro-Trump lawyer
Jeffrey Clark, top Justice Department official
Jenna Ellis, Trump campaign lawyer
Robert Cheeley, lawyer who promoted fraud claims
Mike Roman, Trump campaign official
David Shafer, former Georgia GOP chair and fake elector
Shawn Still, fake GOP elector
Stephen Lee, pastor tied to intimidation of election workers
Harrison Floyd, leader of Black Voices for Trump
Trevian Kutti, publicist tied to intimidation of election workers
Sidney Powell, Trump campaign lawyer
Cathy Latham, fake GOP elector tied to Coffee County breach
Scott Hall, tied to Coffee County election system breach
Misty Hampton, Coffee County elections supervisor
Ray Smith, attorney
In addition to the 18 co-defendants, there are a total of 30 unindicted co-conspirators. We know that one of them, “Individual 8,” appears to be Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, a former state senator who was one of the false Trump electors. Willis was barred from investigating Jones after she held a fundraiser for his Democratic opponent in the 2022 election.
What are they being charged with?
Willis is pursuing a RICO case against the defendants. Like the federal law it mirrors, RICO, which stands for Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, is a state law that has been used to go after organized crime groups, such as street gangs and drug cartels.
But in recent years the statute has been used to target white collar crimes as well. Some of you may remember that Willis scored convictions in a RICO case against about a dozen Atlanta teachers and administrators who were accused of falsifying standardized test scores. She is also currently pursuing RICO charges against rapper Young Thug and his record label, YSL.
With all of that in mind, here are the charges Willis has filed against Trump and his allies.
Violation of RICO Act
Impersonating a Public Officer
Solicitation of Violation of Oath by Public Officer
Criminal Attempt to Commit False Statements and Writings
Forgery
Conspiracy to Commit Forgery in the First Degree
Conspiracy to Defraud the State
Perjury
How did we get here?
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis first launched the investigation in early 2021, shortly after the then-President’s phone call with Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which he frantically urged state election officials to “find” enough votes to erase Joe Biden’s lead.
Since then Willis and her office have been gathering evidence and interviewing witnesses, with help from a special purpose grand jury. Among those interviewed have been Raffensperger, Gov. Kemp and several state election officials.
Two former Democratic state legislators, Bee Nguyen and Jen Jordan, have also cooperated with investigators. Both were part of statehouse committees that heard falsehood-filled testimony from Giuliani and other Trump lawyers after the 2020 election.
We also learned over the weekend that Fulton County prosecutors are in possession of text messages linking Trump’s legal team to a voting system breach in Coffee County, a small rural county in southeast Georgia.
Grand jurors moved well ahead of schedule, hearing from every key witness Monday afternoon and handing up the indictment that same evening. Jordan and Nguyen both testified Monday, along with election official Gabriel Sterling and former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan.
George Chidi, a journalist who witnessed the meeting of the sham Trump electors at the state capitol, was summoned to testify but said Monday night that jurors had wrapped up their work without hearing from him.
What’s next?
As mentioned before, this is the former President’s fourth criminal indictment this year. But is his second relating to his actions following the 2020 election. He is facing federal charges in connection to the January 6 Capitol riot.
But as Georgia State law professor Anthony Michael Kreis points out, this case is more far-reaching because there are multiple co-defendants with close ties to Trump.
Additionally, Kreis notes, Trump cannot insulate himself from this case if he wins the 2024 election because this is a state-level case (Presidents can only pardon federal crimes). And Georgia is particularly unique because the governor does not have pardon power, either. That power lies with a panel called the State Board of Pardons and Paroles.
Willis said Monday night that she would seek a trial date within six months, but legal experts questioned whether a case of this magnitude with this many co-defendants can be tried in such a short time span.
Plus, the former President’s other criminal cases are already crowding his calendar. He is expected to be back in court in December in the New York hush money case, and federal prosecutors in his January 6 case would like for that trial to begin next January — just days before the Iowa caucuses. The classified documents trial is slated to begin next spring.
Will there be cameras in the courtroom?
And now for the question on everyone’s mind: will there be cameras inside the courtroom?
Those who watched live coverage of the indictment on cable news Monday night may have noticed how transparent the process was compared to the other jurisdictions where Trump is facing charges. Cameras were inside the courtroom when the judge was handed the indictment and folks at home got to watch the county clerk as she signed the indictment. So what does this mean for the trial?
In short, it is not entirely unlikely that both the arraignment and the trial will be televised. In Georgia, television cameras are allowed inside court proceedings at the discretion of the judge.
And you may remember that Trump’s New York indictment was not unsealed until he was arraigned days later. In Georgia, all indictments and court filings are made public immediately, just as we saw Monday night.
So rather than relying on quotes and read-outs from reporters inside the courthouse, it is very possible that you will be able to watch this trial from your couch on live television.
Excellent reporting! Many thanks Niles!
DA Willis came with all the goods on everybody. Lock em all up and throw away the key. VOTE BLUE!