Latest Update: 10/24/2023
In a sweeping criminal case centered around efforts to subvert the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia, former President Donald Trump and eighteen co-defendants, including his Chief-of-Staff Mark Meadows, and attorneys Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman, were indicted under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act as well as multiple other counts on August 14, 2023. This indictment, following a meticulous years-long investigation led by Fulton County Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis, reflects allegations of a multifaceted scheme to overturn the will of Georgia voters and invalidate the election's outcome.
Among these co-defendants, several have already pled guilty in connection with the case, including Trump lawyers Jenna Ellis, Sidney Powell, Kenneth Chesebro, and Atlanta bail bondsman Scott Hall. These guilty pleas mark significant developments in the ongoing legal proceedings, with all of those defendants agreeing to provide potential evidence and testimony that could impact the remaining defendants, including Donald Trump, set to face trial in early 2024.
Jenna Ellis
Jenna Ellis, a former lawyer for Donald Trump's 2020 campaign, has pled guilty to one felony stemming from her efforts to spread lies about the outcome of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and elsewhere. As a part of her guilty plea, Ellis was sentenced to five years of probation, 100 hours of community service, a $5,000 restitution payment, and writing an apology letter to Georgial. She worked closely with Rudy Giuliani, another defendant in the case, and is the fourth Trump co-defendant to plead guilty.
Ellis's role in the 2020 election interference efforts included making false election fraud claims and traveling with Giuliani to key states to urge lawmakers to reject popular vote results. She also drafted memos for Trump on how Vice President Mike Pence could reverse the election outcome. During her plea hearing, she admitted that her actions were driven by "selfish" motives and had wrongly undermined public confidence in the election. Despite her past association with Trump, Ellis has distanced herself from him, expressing skepticism about supporting his potential 2024 nomination bid.
Kenneth Chesebro
Kenneth Chesebro, the “architect” of the Trump campaign's false electors plot, pled guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to commit filing false documents in the Georgia election subversion case. Chesebro's sentence includes five years of probation, a $5,000 restitution payment, and a commitment to testify in future trials. He will also have to write an apology to the people of Georgia for his actions.
Chesebro confessed to actions stemming from the allegations that he conspired with Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and John Eastman, among others, to present a fake slate of GOP electors in Georgia and other states, an effort to overturn the will of the voters. 'Cheseboro’s willingness to testify may pose challenges to Trump's defense.
Sidney Powell
Sidney Powell, who previously worked as a lawyer for Donald Trump during the 2020 presidential election, surprised many by pleading guilty to six criminal counts of conspiracy to commit interference with election duties. These charges stemmed from a sweeping election interference indictment that included racketeering and six other felony counts. Powell confessed to her criminal involvement in a plot to unlawfully access secure election machines in Georgia. In a significant development, she agreed to provide testimony against Trump and other co-defendants if prosecutors request it as part of her plea deal.
Powell had initially faced seven felony counts related to her role in the voting machine hacking scandal, primarily in Coffee County, GA, among other locations. She was among the 19 defendants named in the 41-count Fulton County, Georgia election interference indictment.
As a consequence of her guilty plea, Powell was sentenced to six years of probation. Additionally, she must issue a written apology to the citizens of Georgia and pay $2,700 in restitution to the state to assist in repairing tampered voting machines, along with an extra $6,000 fine.
Scott Hall
Scott Hall, a bail bondsman from Atlanta, was the first defendant in the Fulton County, Georgia election interference case to plead guilty. He was initially charged with seven counts in the 41-count indictment, alongside 18 other defendants, including Donald Trump. Hall pled guilty to five counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with the performance of election duties. As part of his sentence, he received five years of probation, a $5,000 fine, and 200 hours of community service, along with a requirement to write an apology letter to all Georgia citizens for his actions.
Hall's involvement included participating in voting machine breaches in Coffee County, where he admitted to scanning every ballot and imaging every hard drive, actions that were captured on videos and circulated widely in the months after the election.
