One of former US President Donald Trump’s 18 co-defendants in his alleged unlawful attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Georgia pleaded guilty Friday as part of a deal with prosecutors.
• Also read: Two of Trump’s first co-defendants are turning themselves in to authorities in Georgia
The 19 defendants named in the indictment issued on August 14 in the state capital Atlanta under an organized crime law have all pleaded not guilty.
Scott Hall, 59, who initially faced seven charges, pleaded guilty to five counts of conspiracy to interfere with election duties during a hearing before Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee.
He was sentenced to five years in prison, a $5,000 fine and 200 hours of community service.
He also promised to write a letter of apology to Georgia voters and to testify at the upcoming trials against the other defendants.
Not everyone will be tried at the same time, as lawyers Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro have called for a speedy trial that will begin on October 23.
No dates have yet been set for the remaining 16, including Mr Trump and his former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani.
Donald Trump, the favorite in the Republican primary, is calling his legal troubles “election interference” at the behest of Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration in a bid to disqualify him from the 2024 race for the White House.
Unlike the sprawling Georgia trial, the federal case being investigated by special prosecutor Jack Smith over alleged illegal attempts to overturn the results of the vote won by Joe Biden targets just one defendant: Donald Trump.
The trial in federal court in Washington is scheduled to begin March 4 and is expected to last about four weeks, according to Jack Smith.
In Georgia, prosecutors expect the trial to last four months.