A Georgia court on Monday indicted former U.S. President Donald Trump and 18 others in Atlanta for their botched attempts to sway the outcome of the 2020 election in the key state.
It’s the fourth criminal indictment in less than six months for Donald Trump, who campaigned for the Republican primary to win back the White House in 2024.
Fulton County District Attorney Fannie Willis appealed the Georgia statute on organized crime, which is used specifically against gangs and carries penalties of five to 20 years in prison.
Despite the incumbent’s defeat in Georgia in 2020, “Trump and the other defendants refused to admit that he had lost, knowingly and willfully participated in a conspiracy to illegally sway the outcome of the election in his favor,” according to the indictment.
A grand jury in the capital of this southeastern state approved the indictment after a day of testimony from witnesses called by the prosecution.
A citizen panel invested with investigative powers was set up by Ms. Willis, who has been investigating the case since 2021, to determine whether there are sufficient elements to indict Donald Trump, specifically for acts of fraud and election interference.
Grace is impossible
The latter attacked the lawyer again, calling him a “rabid partisan” who served the interests of Democratic President Joe Biden in a press release from his campaign Monday evening.
“Willis has strategically slowed his investigation to interfere as much as possible with the 2024 presidential election and harm the core Trump campaign” In the polls, according to this text, without an explicit confirmation of his accusation.
The investigation was sparked by a phone call from Donald Trump in January 2021 — the recording of which has been made public — in which he asked a senior local official to “find” about 12,000 absentee votes in his name to help him win the state. .
To prevent possible pressure or violence, security barriers were set up in front of the courthouse in Atlanta.
Unlike federal trials, court proceedings in Georgia are televised, but the real estate mogul, who is famous for hosting a reality TV show, must be allowed to represent him there.
Even if he wins in 2024, if he is found guilty, he cannot pardon himself or be dropped by the prosecutor’s office because this is a court-level case. State of Georgia, over which the federal government has no jurisdiction. .
The actions are part of the facts contained in the August 1 indictment against Donald Trump in federal court in Washington for alleged illegal manipulation during the 2020 election in seven key states, including Georgia. A hearing date has yet to be set.
The former president, who is crushing opponents in the Republican primary, should also be tried in March and May of 2024.
He had to answer before a New York state judge to buy the X film actress’s silence, and then before a federal judge in Florida (south-east) for allegedly negligent handling of classified documents. )
