The much-anticipated indictment against Former President Donald Trump in the Georgia election tampering case has been handed down.
According to the indictment filed by the Fulton County grand jury on August 14, 2023, Donald Trump and 18 of his associates are charged with 41 counts of election interference crimes in Georgia. The charges include:
– Violation of the Georgia RICO Act (racketeering) for participating in a conspiracy to overturn the state’s 2020 election result by spreading false claims of fraud, pressuring election officials, convening fake electors and attempting to tamper with voting equipment.
– Criminal solicitation to commit election fraud for asking Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to overturn his loss to Joe Biden in a phone call on January 2, 2021.
– Forgery for sending a false certificate of ascertainment to the National Archives that declared Trump as the winner of Georgia’s electoral votes, despite the official certification of Biden’s victory by the state.
– Violation of oath by a public officer for Mark Meadows, Trump’s former chief of staff, who allegedly breached his duty to uphold the Constitution by aiding Trump’s efforts to subvert the election.
– False swearing for Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s former lawyer, who allegedly lied under oath during a legislative hearing on December 3, 2020, where he presented misleading evidence of voter fraud in Georgia.
– Suborning false swearing for John Eastman, a conservative lawyer, who allegedly induced Jeffrey Clark, a former Justice Department official, to lie under oath during the same hearing.
– Conspiracy to commit false statements for Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis, two lawyers who represented Trump in lawsuits challenging Georgia’s election results, who allegedly coordinated with other defendants to make false and defamatory statements about the integrity of the election.
The indictment also names several other individuals who were involved in Trump’s scheme, such as Cathy Latham, a fake elector who accessed Dominion voting machines without authorization; Vernon Jones, a former state representative who endorsed Trump; and Jody Hice, a congressman who objected to Georgia’s electoral votes in Congress. Trump and the other defendants have until noon EDT (1600 GMT) on Friday, Aug. 25, to surrender voluntarily, rather than face arrest.
The indictment is based on evidence gathered by the Fulton County district attorney’s office over a period of two years, which launched a criminal investigation into Trump’s conduct in February 2021. It qualifies as one of the longest investigations on record.
The investigation was prompted by a complaint filed by Raffensperger, who reported Trump’s phone call as a potential violation of state law. The district attorney’s office also obtained records of communications, meetings and documents from various sources, including the White House, the Justice Department, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Dominion Voting Systems.
The indictment is the second criminal case against Trump related to his attempts to overturn the 2020 election. In July 2021, Jack Smith, a special counsel appointed by the Justice Department, charged Trump and four others with obstruction of justice and conspiracy for pressuring former acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen to intervene in the election. That case is pending in federal court in Washington DC.
If convicted of the charges in Georgia, Trump and his associates could face prison sentences ranging from one to 20 years, as well as fines and restitution. The defendants are expected to plead not guilty and challenge the indictment on various grounds, such as lack of jurisdiction, political bias and violation of constitutional rights. The trial date has not been set yet.
However, even if Trump is convicted in Georgia or Florida or both states, he could still run for president again in 2024. The Constitution does not bar anyone indicted or convicted from seeking or taking office. There is also nothing barring someone found liable in a civil suit from entering the White House. The only requirements to serve as president are being at least 35 years old, a natural-born citizen and a resident of the United States for at least 14 years.
How someone would serve as president from prison is an untested question. If elected again, Trump could not pardon himself or dismiss the case in state court, but he could try to influence or interfere with the prosecution or appeal process.
