It has been reported that the Fulton County judge, who is presiding over Donald Trump’s election interference case in Georgia has dismissed three more counts, including two charges against the former president. Judge Scott McAfee had previously dismissed six counts, three of which also involved Trump.
“President Trump and his legal team in Georgia have triumphed once again,” Trump’s lawyer Steve Sadow declared in response to the order. The court also ruled that counts 15 and 27 should be rejected as well.
Now as a result, Trump still faces eight counts in the case, while originally he was charged with 13.
However, in his ruling Judge McAfee dismissed three counts involving the filing of false documents in federal court by concluding that the state does not have the jurisdiction to prosecute alleged crimes committed against the federal government. McAfee stated that these three counts “are beyond the jurisdiction of this state and must be dismissed”.
The charges filed include attempted filing of false documents, conspiracy to file false documents, and filing false documents.
In a separate ruling, McAfee additionally rejected the motion to dismiss the main charge, also known as the RICO charge, stating that it was “facially sound and constitutionally sufficient as alleged.”
Chris Timmons, a former Georgia prosecutor, declared that Thursday’s ruling dismissing the charges “is certainly a victory for the defense,” but that “it is not a significant victory” because the overall RICO charge remains in place.
Nonetheless last year, Trump and 18 others pleaded not guilty to all charges in a broad indictment of racketeering regarding their alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
