ATLANTA (AP) — Donald Trump and 18 other colleagues He was indicted in Georgia on Monday. It was part of a sweeping indictment that accused him of plotting to illegally overturn his defeat in the 2020 election and prevent a peaceful transition of power.
The indictment, filed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, follows an investigation that lasted more than two years and is the fourth criminal case filed against the former president.
Those charged in Monday's indictment face numerous charges. Including extortion, violation of oath by a public official, forgery, false statements and other crimes. Prosecutors say everyone must surrender to authorities by August 25.
The 19 defendants charged in the indictment are:
donald trump: After the 2020 general election, then-President Donald Trump became fixated on Georgia, refusing to accept his narrow loss in the state and baselessly claiming widespread election fraud in the state. I did it. He also called state leaders, including Gov. Brian Kemp, urging them to find a way to recoup losses in the state.in January 2, 2021 Telephone Trump, along with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, suggested that the state's top elections official could help him “find” the votes he needs to win in the state. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis launched an investigation into possible illegal attempts to influence the election shortly after the recording of the call was made public.
Rudy Giuliani: At multiple Congressional hearings held at the Georgia State Capitol in December 2020, Former New York City Mayor and Trump Lawyer promoted unsubstantiated allegations of widespread election fraud in Georgia;The prosecutor stated that Rudy Giuliani It also forced 16 Georgia Republicans to serve as fake electors, falsely claiming that Trump won the 2020 presidential election and declaring themselves to be the state's “duly elected and eligible” electors. He was also involved in the planning.
john eastman: Former dean of Chapman University School of Law in Southern California; john eastmanwas one of Trump's lawyers and was deeply involved in some of his cases. efforts to maintain power After the 2020 election. He wrote a memo arguing that Trump could remain in power if then-Vice President Mike Pence overturned the election results during a joint session of the House and Senate to count the electoral votes. The plan includes “Alternate” elector In seven battleground states, including Georgia, Trump falsely certified that he won each state.
mark meadows: President Trump's chief of staff visited Cobb County, a suburb of Atlanta, in December 2020 while state investigators were conducting an audit of signatures on absentee ballot envelopes. mark meadows obtained the telephone number of Frances Watson, the chief investigator in the Secretary of State's Office, and gave it to Trump, who then called her.he also participated January 2, 2021 Telephone between President Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Sidney Powell: lawyer and staunch ally of Trump. sidney powell Prosecutors said the suspect went to the home of conservative South Carolina attorney Lin Wood in November 2020 “for the purpose of exploring options to influence the outcome of the November 2020 election in Georgia and other states.” He was part of a group that met at Mr. Wood, who is licensed in Georgia, said Mr. Powell asked him to help him find Georgia residents to serve as plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging the state's election results. Additionally, emails and documents obtained through a subpoena in an unrelated lawsuit show that Mr. Powell was involved in arranging local travel for the computer forensics team. coffee countyin January 2021 to copy data and software from election equipment located about 200 miles southeast of Atlanta.
Kenneth Chesebro: Prosecutors say attorney Kenneth Chesebro worked with the Georgia Republican Party at the direction of the Trump campaign in the weeks after the November 2020 election. Cheseburo worked on coordination, Executing the plan The plan is to have 16 Georgia Republicans sign a certificate falsely declaring that Trump won and declaring themselves the state's “duly elected and qualified” electors.
Jeffrey Clark: Jeffrey Clark, the U.S. Justice Department official who defended President Trump's false claims about election fraud, revealed in January that he presented a draft letter to colleagues urging Georgia officials to call a special session on the election results. This was revealed in testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives committee investigating the presidential election. June 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Mr. Clark wanted the letter sent, but higher-ups at the Justice Department refused.
jenna ellis:The lawyer, along with Rudy Giuliani, appeared at a hearing hosted by state Republicans at the Georgia State Capitol on December 3, 2020, in which false claims of election fraud were made. jenna ellis Also, when Congress met to certify the election results on January 6, 2021, Pence said, “Ignore certified electoral votes from Georgia and other 'contested' states. Prosecutors said they sent at least two legal memos to Trump and his lawyers advising him to do so. .
ray smith: Georgia-based attorney Ray Smith was involved in multiple lawsuits challenging the results of the 2020 Georgia election. He also gathered witnesses to testify at a Georgia Legislative Subcommittee hearing in December 2020 regarding allegations regarding state elections.
Robert Cheeley: Georgia attorney Robert Chealey showed video clips of election workers to lawmakers at Atlanta's State Farm Arena, alleging that the workers were counting votes twice and even three times. he told lawmakers after Giuliani.
michael roman: Michael Roman, a former White House aide and director of President Trump's Election Day operations, was involved in an effort to send out fake electors after the 2020 election.
David Shafer: Georgia Republican Party Chairman Shafer gathered at the state Capitol on December 14, 2020, signed a certification falsely declaring that Trump had won, and identified himself as the state's “duly elected and qualified” '' He was one of 16 state Republicans to declare himself an elector. . He also joined Trump in a lawsuit challenging the certification of the 2020 Georgia election.
Sean Still: He is one of 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a false certification saying Trump won the state and declared himself the state's “duly elected and qualified” electors. was. Sean Still served as the finance chairman of the state Republican Party in 2020 and served as a Georgia delegate to the Republican National Convention that year. He will be elected to the Georgia State Senate in November 2022, representing a district in the Atlanta suburbs.
stephen cliffgard lee: Prosecutors say Georgia election worker Ruby Freeman and her daughter were accused of removing fraudulent ballots from their suitcases during vote counting after they were framed by Trump and his allies. Stephen Cliffgard-Lee announced that he and others had tried to apply pressure. Prosecutors said in a court filing last year that Lee allegedly knocked on Freeman's door and scared her into calling 911 three times.
harrison william prescott floyd: Also known as Willie Lewis Floyd III, he served as director of Black Voices for President Trump and contacted Lee to arrange a meeting between Freeman and Chicago-based publicist Trevian Kutty. He is accused of soliciting.
Trevian C. Kutty: Prosecutors allege that publicist Trevian C. Kutty claimed to have high-level ties to law enforcement. Freeman said he met with Kutty at the police station, where he engaged Floyd in a conversation over speakerphone. Prosecutors allege that Kutty presented himself as someone who could help Freeman but pressured him into making a false confession to election fraud.
Kathy Latham: Kathy, one of 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a false certification saying Trump won the state and declared themselves the state's “duly elected and qualified” electors. Latham was also Speaker of the Assembly. coffee county Republican Party. She was at the county elections office for most of the day on January 7, 2021, welcoming a computer forensics team that arrived to copy software and data from the county's election equipment, according to the Secretary of State's Office. “It was an unauthorized access.'') tells the machine.
scott graham hall: Atlanta-area bail bondsman Scott Graham Hall. Involved in stealing voting information It was owned by Dominion Voting Systems in Coffee County, a small jurisdiction in south Georgia. Mr. Powell, Mr. Latham and former county elections supervisor Misty Hampton were also charged in the scheme.
misty hampton: She was the campaign manager. coffee county. Misty Hampton was at the county elections office on January 7, 2021, when a computer forensics team copied software and data from the county's election equipment. She also granted two other men who were actively working to question the 2020 election results access to her election office later that month and spent hours inside using equipment. I was also allowed to spend some time there.
Former President Donald Trump and 18 of his allies have been indicted in Georgia over their efforts to overturn his loss in the state's 2020 presidential election. (August 15)
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Revised Stephen Cliffgard Lee's entry to reflect that he was suspected of trying to pressure Ruby Freeman and her daughter, not Freeman's mother.
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Cooper reported from Phoenix.
