Key things to know about the Trump indictment in the Georgia case — and when the co-defendants must surrender
From CNN's Sara Murray, Jason Morris, Zachary Cohen, Maxime Tamsett, Tierney Sneed, Devan Cole, Marshall Cohen and Jeremy Herb
An Atlanta-based grand jury has indicted Donald Trump and 18 others on state charges stemming from their efforts to overturn the former president’s 2020 electoral defeat.
The historic 41-count indictment unsealed Monday is the fourth criminal case that Trump is facing.
All 19 co-defendants must surrender by August 25 at noon ET, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis told reporters Monday after the indictment was released.
Trump and others “joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome” of the election, according to the indictment, which said they “unlawfully conspired and endeavored to conduct and participate in a criminal enterprise” after Trump lost the election in Georgia.
How this case is different: The charges, brought in a sweeping investigation led by Willis, cover some of the most egregious efforts by the former president’s allies to meddle in the 2020 presidential election.
Unlike the election subversion charges brought by special counsel Jack Smith, Willis’ case will be insulated from any Trump meddling if he is reelected in 2024; he will not be able to pardon himself or his allies of any state law convictions, nor will he be able to dismiss the Fulton County prosecutors bringing the charges.
Many of the efforts that Trump and his allies spearheaded in Georgia resembled plots in other battleground states President Joe Biden won, but the Georgia-focused effort featured some of the most audacious gambits by the former president and his supporters.
“Trump and the other Defendants charged in this Indictment refused to accept that Trump lost, and they knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump,” the indictment states. “That conspiracy contained a common plan and purpose to commit two or more acts of racketeering activity in Fulton County, Georgia, elsewhere in the State of Georgia, and in other states.”
The indictment also included an additional 30 unindicted co-conspirators in addition to the charged defendants.
Willis, a Democrat, will undoubtedly face intense criticism from Trump and his allies, who have frequently sought to discredit officials investigating him by casting them as rogue political actors. Trump had already unsuccessfully sought to disqualify her, citing public comments she has made about the case.
Before the indictment was unsealed Monday, the Trump campaign accused Willis of “election interference” amid the 2024 GOP presidential nomination campaign
“The timing of this latest coordinated strike by a biased prosecutor in an overwhelmingly Democrat jurisdiction not only betrays the trust of the American people, but also exposes true motivation driving their fabricated accusations,” the statement said in part.
Trump is now facing 91 criminal charges in 4 criminal cases
From CNN's Tierney Sneed
The indictment in Georgia against former President Donald Trump is photographed Monday, Aug. 14, 2023. Rebecca Wright/CNN
Former President Donald Trump has been charged with 91 crimes in four criminal cases that are happening in four different jurisdictions.
The new indictment returned Monday by the Fulton County grand jury accuses Trump of 13 crimes.
The Atlanta based prosecution is one of four criminal cases Trump is facing – two federal, and two state cases.
In the New York case brought by Manhattan prosecutors, Trump has been charged with 34 counts stemming from the alleged 2016 campaign hush money scheme.
Trump faces 40 charges in special counsel Jack Smith’s Mar-a-Lago documents case, after a superseding indictment was unveiled last month.
Smith’s separate federal election subversion case against Trump levied four criminal charges against the former president.
Here's an overview of the cases and charges:
Manhattan prosecutors’ hush money case: 34 counts against Trump
DOJ special counsel’s classified documents case: 40 counts against Trump
DOJ special counsel’s election subversion case: 4 counts against Trump
Atlanta prosecutors’ Georgia election meddling case: 13 counts against Trump
24 min ago
Who is Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis?
From CNN's Shawna Mizelle
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis watches proceedings during a hearing to decide if the final report by a special grand jury looking into possible interference in the 2020 presidential election can be released on January 24 in Atlanta. (John Bazemore/AP)
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has reemerged in the spotlight after her office charged 19 co-defendants, including Donald Trump, regarding efforts by the former president and his allies to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
The indictments are a culmination of an investigation that has lasted more than two years and has resulted in multiple charges including conspiracy and racketeering, which Willis has a history of successfully bringing against defendants.
The Atlanta-area prosecutor, who has not shied away from prosecuting high-profile cases, presented her case before a grand jury on Monday.
Willis, a Democrat who is Fulton County’s first female DA, had been in office for only a day when the former president phoned Georgia’s GOP secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, on January 2, 2021, urging him to “find” votes to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
She campaigned on the premise of restoring integrity to the Fulton County district attorney’s office, was elected after ousting six-term incumbent Paul Howard and inherited a stack of backlogged cases.
Within a month, her office was firing off letters to Georgia officials asking them to preserve documents related to attempts to influence the state’s 2020 election.
Trump has vehemently denied wrongdoing, as have his allies who are also under scrutiny in the probe. The former president has lashed out at Willis, who is Black, calling her “racist” and a “lunatic Marxist” and baselessly claiming she has ties to gang members.
Asked by CNN in February 2022 about the struggle to envision a former president under prosecution in her state, Willis said, “What I could envision is that we actually live in a society where Lady Justice is blind, and that it doesn’t matter if you’re rich poor, Black, White, Democrat or Republican. If you violated the law, you’re going to be charged.”
Besides leading the election subversion probe, Willis has also brought anti-corruption indictments against Grammy-winning rapper Young Thug and his associates. The district attorney has spoken fondly of RICO – the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act – and has used it in unorthodox ways to bring charges against school officials and musicians, including Young Thug.
“The way she goes about any cases, she starts at the top and she really dives into it. She follows every lead that she can,” said Charlie Bailey, who previously worked with Willis in the Fulton County DA’s office and on the 2014 Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal case, where she used racketeering statutes to secure guilty pleas from teachers and administrators.
“Ultimately she will make a decision based on the fact that they will uncover,” Bailey told CNN in 2021. “And she’ll make a decision based on applying that pertinent law.”
Former President Donald Trump has been indicted by an Atlanta-area grand jury in the 2020 election subversion case in Georgia.Prosecutors say Trump and others "joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome" of the election.
There are 19 defendants named in the 41-count indictment. including Trump as well as his lawyers, John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. Read the full indictment.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said the 19 defendants have until noon ET on August 25 to "voluntarily surrender."
This is the fourth indictment Trump is facing. The former president, who is the current GOP 2024 frontrunner, has already been charged in three separate cases this year. He denies any wrongdoing and says they are politically motivated.
An Atlanta-based grand jury has indicted Donald Trump and 18 others on state charges stemming from their efforts to overturn the former president’s 2020 electoral defeat.
The historic 41-count indictment unsealed Monday is the fourth criminal case that Trump is facing.
All 19 co-defendants must surrender by August 25 at noon ET, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis told reporters Monday after the indictment was released.
Trump and others “joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome” of the election, according to the indictment, which said they “unlawfully conspired and endeavored to conduct and participate in a criminal enterprise” after Trump lost the election in Georgia.
How this case is different: The charges, brought in a sweeping investigation led by Willis, cover some of the most egregious efforts by the former president’s allies to meddle in the 2020 presidential election.
Unlike the election subversion charges brought by special counsel Jack Smith, Willis’ case will be insulated from any Trump meddling if he is reelected in 2024; he will not be able to pardon himself or his allies of any state law convictions, nor will he be able to dismiss the Fulton County prosecutors bringing the charges.
Many of the efforts that Trump and his allies spearheaded in Georgia resembled plots in other battleground states President Joe Biden won, but the Georgia-focused effort featured some of the most audacious gambits by the former president and his supporters.
“Trump and the other Defendants charged in this Indictment refused to accept that Trump lost, and they knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump,” the indictment states. “That conspiracy contained a common plan and purpose to commit two or more acts of racketeering activity in Fulton County, Georgia, elsewhere in the State of Georgia, and in other states.”
The indictment also included an additional 30 unindicted co-conspirators in addition to the charged defendants.
Willis, a Democrat, will undoubtedly face intense criticism from Trump and his allies, who have frequently sought to discredit officials investigating him by casting them as rogue political actors. Trump had already unsuccessfully sought to disqualify her, citing public comments she has made about the case.
Before the indictment was unsealed Monday, the Trump campaign accused Willis of “election interference” amid the 2024 GOP presidential nomination campaign
“The timing of this latest coordinated strike by a biased prosecutor in an overwhelmingly Democrat jurisdiction not only betrays the trust of the American people, but also exposes true motivation driving their fabricated accusations,” the statement said in part.
The indictment in Georgia against former President Donald Trump is photographed Monday, Aug. 14, 2023. Rebecca Wright/CNN
Former President Donald Trump has been charged with 91 crimes in four criminal cases that are happening in four different jurisdictions.
The new indictment returned Monday by the Fulton County grand jury accuses Trump of 13 crimes.
The Atlanta based prosecution is one of four criminal cases Trump is facing – two federal, and two state cases.
In the New York case brought by Manhattan prosecutors, Trump has been charged with 34 counts stemming from the alleged 2016 campaign hush money scheme.
Trump faces 40 charges in special counsel Jack Smith’s Mar-a-Lago documents case, after a superseding indictment was unveiled last month.
Smith’s separate federal election subversion case against Trump levied four criminal charges against the former president.
Here's an overview of the cases and charges:
Manhattan prosecutors’ hush money case: 34 counts against Trump
DOJ special counsel’s classified documents case: 40 counts against Trump
DOJ special counsel’s election subversion case: 4 counts against Trump
Atlanta prosecutors’ Georgia election meddling case: 13 counts against Trump
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis watches proceedings during a hearing to decide if the final report by a special grand jury looking into possible interference in the 2020 presidential election can be released on January 24 in Atlanta. (John Bazemore/AP)
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has reemerged in the spotlight after her office charged 19 co-defendants, including Donald Trump, regarding efforts by the former president and his allies to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
The indictments are a culmination of an investigation that has lasted more than two years and has resulted in multiple charges including conspiracy and racketeering, which Willis has a history of successfully bringing against defendants.
The Atlanta-area prosecutor, who has not shied away from prosecuting high-profile cases, presented her case before a grand jury on Monday.
Willis, a Democrat who is Fulton County’s first female DA, had been in office for only a day when the former president phoned Georgia’s GOP secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, on January 2, 2021, urging him to “find” votes to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
She campaigned on the premise of restoring integrity to the Fulton County district attorney’s office, was elected after ousting six-term incumbent Paul Howard and inherited a stack of backlogged cases.
Within a month, her office was firing off letters to Georgia officials asking them to preserve documents related to attempts to influence the state’s 2020 election.
Trump has vehemently denied wrongdoing, as have his allies who are also under scrutiny in the probe. The former president has lashed out at Willis, who is Black, calling her “racist” and a “lunatic Marxist” and baselessly claiming she has ties to gang members.
Asked by CNN in February 2022 about the struggle to envision a former president under prosecution in her state, Willis said, “What I could envision is that we actually live in a society where Lady Justice is blind, and that it doesn’t matter if you’re rich poor, Black, White, Democrat or Republican. If you violated the law, you’re going to be charged.”
Besides leading the election subversion probe, Willis has also brought anti-corruption indictments against Grammy-winning rapper Young Thug and his associates. The district attorney has spoken fondly of RICO – the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act – and has used it in unorthodox ways to bring charges against school officials and musicians, including Young Thug.
“The way she goes about any cases, she starts at the top and she really dives into it. She follows every lead that she can,” said Charlie Bailey, who previously worked with Willis in the Fulton County DA’s office and on the 2014 Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal case, where she used racketeering statutes to secure guilty pleas from teachers and administrators.
“Ultimately she will make a decision based on the fact that they will uncover,” Bailey told CNN in 2021. “And she’ll make a decision based on applying that pertinent law.”
