Judge suggests prosecutors may need to try Trump Georgia case twice.
Prosecutors May Have to Try Trump and Co-Defendants Separately in Georgia Case, Judge Suggests
A judge presiding over the case against former President Donald Trump and his 18 co-defendants in Georgia has suggested that it may be unfeasible to try them all together. This means that the prosecutors may be forced to try their case at least twice.
The case, brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis on August 14, alleges that President Trump and more than a dozen others engaged in a criminal enterprise by challenging the results of the 2020 elections.
The prosecutors initially requested a trial start date of March 4, 2024, but moved it to October 23, 2023, after co-defendants Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell requested a speedy trial.
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The judge, Scott McAfee, approved the October 23 trial date for Mr. Chesebro but not for the other defendants. Lawyers for the other defendants have indicated that they won’t be ready for trial by that date.
President Trump’s lawyers filed a motion on August 31 to have his case tried separately from Mr. Chesebro and Ms. Powell, citing concerns about a fair trial due to the expedited schedule.
In addition, the judge expects a flurry of pre-trial issues that need to be litigated. Several defendants have also requested to have the case moved to federal court, which further delays the proceedings.
During a September 6 hearing, the judge gave the prosecutors until September 12 to address the effects of the removal proceedings on the case.
The judge denied the request of Mr. Chesebro and Ms. Powell to have their trials separated from each other and put them on the same October 23 trial schedule. However, he expressed skepticism about trying all 19 defendants together, suggesting that they may need to be tried separately.
The prosecutors strongly oppose this, arguing that a racketeering conspiracy allows them to present the same case against each defendant. They anticipate a four-month trial, excluding jury selection, with over 150 witnesses for the prosecution alone.
Lawyers for Mr. Chesebro and Ms. Powell argue that a joint trial would be prejudicial to their clients, as they were not involved in most of the alleged activity. Mr. Chesebro is accused of devising a strategy to disrupt the counting of electoral votes, while Ms. Powell is accused of unauthorized access to election machines and computers.
Despite their differences, both defendants were pursuing the goal of “electing Donald Trump,” according to Scott Grubmann, a lawyer involved in the case.
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