by WorldTribune Staff, September 1, 2023
Of the four indictments of former President Donald Trump in a four and a half month span, the one in Georgia stands out in terms of spectacle and disgrace, critics say.
Fulton County was the first to publicize mug shots of Trump and his 18 co-defendants (though the Trump mug backfired big-time on the Left). What’s more, the trial will be televised. And Brian Kemp, the “Republican” governor of the state, has backed Democrat Fulton County DA Fani Willis despite popular/legislative outrage over her professional conduct.
Newt Gingrich, the former Georgia representative and Speaker of the House, cited an informed source as saying that Willis was ordered to indict Trump ahead of schedule to deflect from the Hunter Biden/David Weiss screwup.
Trump on Thursday pleaded “not guilty” to the charges brought against him Willis and opted to waive his arraignment.
The litany of charges leveled against Trump and his co-defendants:
Violating the Georgia RICO Act, solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, false statements and writings, impersonating a public officer, conspiracy to commit impersonating a public officer, forgery in the first degree, conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree, conspiracy to commit false statements and writings, criminal attempt to commit filing false documents, conspiracy to commit filing false documents, criminal attempt to commit influencing witnesses, influencing witnesses, conspiracy to commit election fraud, conspiracy to commit computer theft, conspiracy to commit computer trespass, conspiracy to commit computer invasion of privacy, conspiracy to defraud the state, and perjury.
Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee said Thursday that Trump’s trial will be broadcast live on the court’s YouTube channel, the latest factor that could make the case a public spectacle unlike any of Trump’s three other criminal cases.
McAfee said all hearings and trials for Trump and his 18 co-defendants will be livestreamed on YouTube, in addition to coverage by media granted access to the courtroom.
Also on Thursday, Kemp said attempts by state Republicans to call a special session to remove Willis are not going to happen.
“Up to this point, I have not seen any evidence that DA Willis’ actions or lack thereof warrant action by the prosecuting attorney oversight commission. As long as I’m governor, we are going to follow the law and the Constitution — regardless of who it helps politically,” Kemp said.
In a letter to the governor filed earlier in August, state Sen. Colton Moore claimed to have the support of “3/5 of each respective house” in the state legislature regarding his efforts to impeach Willis.
Trump spokeswoman Liz Harrington said in a social media post: “Brian Kemp is going to ‘follow the law and the constitution’ by letting a corrupt DA indict the leading candidate for president for literally exercising his constitutional rights. He’s just as corrupt as Willis.”
Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz, who was legal counsel for Al Gore in his challenge of the 2000 election, slammed the Georgia indictment, calling Trump’s actions “very similar” to that of Al Gore’s legal strategy in the Bush v. Gore case that decided the 2000 presidential election.
“We challenged the election, and we did much of the things that are being done today and people praised us. I wrote a bestselling book called ‘Supreme Injustice. Now they’re making it a crime,” Dershowitz told Fox News Digital.
“You cannot start making crimes out of things that the Democrats did — Tilden Hayes, John Kennedy election 2000 election 2016 election, Jamie Raskin gets up and does some of the same things. These are political actions that the Constitution prefers us to take rather than going out on the streets and rioting. We’re supposed to go to court. We’re supposed to go to Congress. You can’t make those things crimes. And you can’t expand the RICO statute to now include political objections,” he said.
Meanwhile, the violence which has reportedly long been commonplace at the Fulton County Jail, where Trump and his co-defendants were booked continued this week.
The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office said that at least two people have been injured and a third killed during a mass stabbing inside the jail this week, according to the Daily Mail.
Related: Trump co-defendant who was denied bail speaks out for other inmates in Fulton County Jail, August 31, 2023
The stabbings come just days after an inmate was killed after filing a civil rights complaint citing excessive force, marking the fourth death in the jail in the last month.
Eight inmates have died within the walls of the Fulton County Jail since the start of the year.
In September 2022, mentally ill inmate LaShawn Thompson reportedly died in his dirty jail cell, with his family claiming that he was eaten alive by bed bugs.
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