CRIME
Trump Attorney Sidney Powell Pleads Guilty In Georgia Election Interference Case
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Sidney Powell, a former attorney to former President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty Thursday in the Georgia election interference case, one day before jury selection was to begin in her trial with co-defendant Kenneth Chesebro.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee severed their case last month, granting them a speedy trial ahead of Trump and 16 other co-defendants accused of interfering in Georgia’s 2020 presidential election.
As part of a plea deal reached with prosecutors, Powell pleaded guilty to six misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to commit election interference. She had originally pleaded not guilty to all charges, which included racketeering, conspiracy to commit election fraud, conspiracy to commit computer theft, and conspiracy to defraud the state.
Powell agreed to serve six years of probation and pay a $6,000 fine along with $2,700 in restitution to the state of Georgia. Under the terms of the deal, she will also have to submit a letter of apology to the people of Georgia and will be required to testify in court proceedings related to the case.
The defendants, including Powell, were indicted by a Fulton County grand jury on felony charges including racketeering under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, Act, which is normally associated with mobsters.
The grand jury accused Trump of “knowingly, willfully and unlawfully” making false statements on a call in which he “unlawfully” solicited Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to help him change Georgias results in the 2020 election.
The 100-page indictment detailed other allegations, including the claim that one of Trumps lawyers attempted to tamper with voting machines and steal data from a voting machine company.
Other defendants include Trumps then-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, his former personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark, and lawyers who allegedly strategized overturning the results, including Powell, Chesebro and John Eastman.
“The indictment alleges that rather than abide by Georgias legal process for election challenges, the defendants engaged in a criminal racketeering enterprise to overturn Georgias presidential election result,” Willis said at a news conference announcing the indictment.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis sought to have all 19 defendants tried together, but McAfee said that would be an enormous undertaking that threatens due process rights.
The precarious ability of the Court to safeguard each defendant’s due process rights and preparation ensure adequate pretrial preparation on the current accelerated track weights heavily, if not decisively, in favor of severance, McAfee stated in the order.
There were also basic logistical matters, such as the fact that there is no courtroom adequately large enough to hold all 19 defendants.
Trump, who has already waived his right to a speedy trial and pleaded not guilty to all charges, will be tried at a later date. The current frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination is facing four separate criminal cases, and is involved in an ongoing civil fraud trial in New York City.
TMX contributed to this article.
