WASHINGTON (Agencies): Former US President Donald Trump and all 18 of his co-defendants in Georgia’s election interference case have turned themselves in to face charges, meeting a deadline for their surrender.
Each of the nineteen defendants, including Trump, presented themselves to the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta by the noon deadline on Friday (16:00 GMT). Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who filed the indictment against the ex-president and his allies earlier this month, had said an arrest warrant would have been issued for anyone who did not comply.
Georgia prosecutors have accused Trump and his co-defendants of joining a conspiracy to “unlawfully change the outcome” of the 2020 United States election in the state. They have denied wrongdoing. All except one of those charged had previously negotiated a bond agreement before arriving at the jail this week and were immediately released after paying a percentage of their bond, and having their fingerprints and mugshots taken.
Willis has requested that arraignments – the court hearings where the accused will formally hear the charges against them and enter a plea – in the case take place on the week of September 5. Trump, the frontrunner in the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination race, turned himself in at the Fulton County jail at approximately 7:30pm (23:30 GMT) on Thursday.
He spent about 20 minutes inside the facility – becoming the first former president in US history to have his mugshot taken – before being released on $200,000 bond. He faces 13 charges in the case, including racketeering, soliciting a public official to violate their oath of office, filing false statements, conspiracy to commit forgery and conspiracy to impersonate a public officer. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and accused Georgia prosecutors of seeking to derail his re-election campaign.
The former mayor of New York City, who also previously served as Trump’s personal lawyer, Giuliani faces the same number of charges as Trump – more than any other co-defendant. Prosecutors have accused Giuliani of spearheading the effort in Georgia by making false statements and soliciting false testimony, conspiring to create phoney paperwork, and asking state lawmakers to violate their oath of office. He has denied any wrongdoing. He surrendered on Wednesday and was released on $150,000 bond.
Trump’s former White House chief of staff, Meadows – like all the co-defendants – has been charged under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law, also known as RICO. He also has been charged with soliciting a public officer to violate their oath of office. Meadows surrendered on Thursday and was released on $100,000 bond.
Eastman, a conservative lawyer, was widely considered the legal architect of the nationwide effort to keep Trump in power after the 2020 election that he lost to President Joe Biden. The former dean of Chapman University Law School in Southern California turned himself in on Tuesday and was booked on nine charges. “I am here today to surrender to an indictment that should never have been brought,” Eastman said in a statement released through his lawyers before his surrender. “I am confident that, when the law is faithfully applied in this proceeding, all of my co-defendants and I will be fully vindicated.”
He was released on $100,000 bond. A lawyer who worked with the Trump campaign, Chesebro is accused of supporting a plan in Georgia and other states to manipulate the election process in order to delay the certification of Biden’s 2020 victory.
So far, Chesebro has been the only defendant to ask for a “speedy trial” and a judge approved that request this week, setting an October 23 start date. Several defendants have since sought to “sever” their case from Chesebro’s, saying the timing was too soon. Chesebro surrendered on Wednesday and was released on $100,000 bond.
The former US Department of Justice official is accused of trying to use his position to shepherd through a plan to overturn the 2020 election results. He surrendered on Friday on two charges – racketeering and committing false statements and writings – and was released on $100,000 bond. The Trump lawyer was charged with racketeering and soliciting a public official to violate their oath of office.
She turned herself in on Wednesday and released on $100,000 bond. The Georgia trial lawyer participated in public hearings with state legislators, where he pushed the false election fraud narrative and presented false evidence to support the claims, prosecutors have alleged. Cheeley was hit with 10 charges, including perjury.
Georgia mugshots: Trump and all 18 co-defendants surrender
