Donald Trump’s White House chief of staff launched a last-ditch effort to avoid arrest in Georgia — as the 19 accused, including the former president, are due to report to jail for custody.
Mark Meadows is seeking to move his trial from state court to federal court and filed a motion in federal court on Tuesday asking for his trial to be postponed. He argued that his alleged actions took place during his time as a federal employee.
Meadows and the other 18 defendants have been given until noon Friday to surrender or Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis will issue an arrest warrant.
John Eastman and Scott Hall turned themselves in at the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta on Tuesday and their mugshots were released hours later.
A similar fate awaits Trump when he enters the Fulton County Jail on Thursday, as his mugshot on charges of election interference could soon become one of the most famous photos of all time.
Former White House chief Mark Meadows is urging a federal judge to step in and keep him from being arrested in Georgia. Former President Donald Trump has announced that he will face charges of election interference on Thursday
John Eastman (left) and Scott Hall (right) both received a yellow card suspension on Tuesday
According to the sheriff, most people arrested in Fulton County are being taken to the main jail on Rice Street, northwest of downtown, where detention conditions are being investigated
Meadows’ legal team on Monday asked Willis to grant an extension of his arrest until after Monday’s hearing on a possible transfer to federal court.
But Willis turned down Meadows’ request on Tuesday.
“I don’t grant extensions,” she told Meadows’ legal team.
“I’ve given people two weeks to face the court.” Her client is no different from any other defendant in this area of law. “The two weeks were an enormous courtesy.”
And she said an arrest warrant would be issued if he didn’t comply.
“On Friday at 12:30 p.m. I will be filing warrants in the system,” she added.
Who Surrendered in the Fulton County Jail?
Donald Trump: former president – will surrender on Thursday
Rudy Giuliani: former Trump attorney – unclear
John Eastman: Attorney – delivered on Tuesday
Mark Meadows: Former Trump Chief of Staff – Urges Judges to Block Arrest
Kenneth Chesebro: former Trump campaign attorney – unclear
Jeffrey Clark: former Justice Department official – asks judge to block arrest
Jenna Ellis: former member of Trump legal team – unclear
Ray Smith III: the attorney who represented Trump in the 2020 Georgia campaign – unclear
Robert Cheeley: Attorney from Atlanta – unclear
Michael Roman: former Trump employee – unclear
David Shafer: a fraudulent 2020 Republican voter and former chairman of the Georgia GOP – unclear
Shawn Still: one of the fraudulent voters of 2020 and current member of the Georgia Senate – unclear
Stephen Lee: a police chaplain from Illinois – unclear
Harrison Floyd: CEO of Black Voices for Trump – unclear
Trevian Kutti: a Chicago-based publicist who represented Kanye West – unclear
Sidney Powell: former member of Trump legal team – unclear
Cathy Latham: one of the fraudulent voters of 2020 and former chair of the Coffee County Republican Party in Georgia – unclear
Scott Hall: a Fulton County 2020 Republican election observer – surrendered Tuesday
Misty Hampton: Former Coffee County Election Commissioner – unclear
Meadows was charged with two felonies, including violating the Georgia Rico Act — also known as RICO — and causing an officer to violate the oath, Willis’ indictment said.
Meadows was involved in the infamous phone call when Trump asked Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” votes to overturn Biden’s victory in the state.
He was also with Trump on January 6, 2021, when the Capitol was stormed and politicians from across the spectrum begged the then President to step in and call off the mob.
Meadows was Trump’s chief of staff for just 10 months, from late March 2020 until he left office in January 2021, but found himself at the center of the former president’s litigation.
Two other members of the 19-member group — former Justice Department attorney Jeffrey Clark and former Georgia Republican Party leader David Shafer — are also seeking to move their prosecution from Fulton County Superior Court to federal district court in Atlanta for similar reasons.
Trump has announced that he will present himself in prison on Thursday.
Rudy Giuliani, meanwhile, is flying to Atlanta on Wednesday to locate a local legal representative.
Giuliani called the charges “an affront to American democracy” and said they “do lasting, irreversible damage to our justice system.”
He has reached out to friends like Tim Parlatore and Bernie Kerik for help finding an Atlanta-based attorney, NBC News reported.
Ted Goodman, Giuliani’s spokesman, said there was no firm surrender plan as Giuliani was still finalizing his representation plans.
On Saturday, The New York Times reported that the former New York City mayor is struggling to pay his legal bills.
The 79-year-old is believed to already owe nearly $3 million in legal fees after facing criminal investigations, private lawsuits and judicial disciplinary proceedings when Trump left office.
Giuliani and his allies have begged Trump for help, but so far the billionaire has paid just $340,000 for expenses Giuliani incurred in confronting Trump over his collaboration.
Trump’s political action committee has spent around $21 million on legal fees, mostly for Trump but also for a number of people linked to investigations into him.
Trump expressed his usual outrage at the indictment Monday night and confirmed he will be in Atlanta on Thursday.
‘Can you believe that?’ he wrote on social media.
“I will be traveling to Atlanta, Georgia on Thursday to be ARRESTED by Fani Willis, a far left district attorney overseeing one of the largest homicide and violent crime disasters in American history.”
“In my case, the trip to Atlanta isn’t for ‘murder’, it’s for the PERFECT PHONE!”
Donald Trump, pictured after his April 4 indictment in Manhattan, is expected to surrender to Fulton County authorities on Thursday
Meadows (left) and Rudy Giuliani (right) face charges in Georgia in connection with the election interference case
Kenneth Chesebro (left) and Jeffrey Clark (right) both face RICO charges in the case
Attorneys Jenna Ellis and Ray Smith were both indicted by a Fulton County grand jury
Pastor Steve Lee faces five charges, many of them for allegedly tampering with witnesses
Michael Roman (left) and Robert Cheeley (right) were ordered to report to the Atlanta Jail for booking
Harrison Floyd (left) and David Shafer (right) have been ordered to stand by the end of the week
Misty Hampton (left) and Cathy Latham (right, in teal) have both been charged in connection with the election interference case
Trevian Kutti (left) and Sidney Powell (right) are two of the 19 people charged in Georgia
Attorney Sidney Powell speaks during a press conference. It’s unclear when she plans to face charges in Georgia
Trump added his well-known claim that the charges were part of an attempt to derail his 2024 campaign and again accused Willis of targeting him to raise funds for her election.
“She has campaigned for this witch hunt and will continue to promote and raise money for it,” he said.
“This is being done in strict coordination with the Crooked Joe Biden’s Department of Justice. ‘It’s election interference!’
His booking comes the day after the first Republican primary debate, which he has confirmed will not be attending.
Trump is also charged in New York with alleged hush money payments to Stormy Daniels. He also faces federal charges for alleged mishandling of confidential documents. Special Counsel Jack Smith has also indicted the former president
On Monday, the 77-year-old’s bail was set at $200,000 in Georgia and he was ordered not to send threatening social media messages.
Details of Trump’s bail were among the first few to be released as the co-defendants reached a settlement.
The Consent Bond Order, published on the Fulton County Superior Court website, said Trump “will not take any action to intimidate any person who he or she knows is a co-defendant or a witness in this case, or to otherwise obstruct administration.’ Justice.’
It added that it will include “social media posts or reposts of someone else’s social media posts.”
Fulton County Sheriff’s deputies install security barriers outside the Fulton County Jail on Monday, just days after an indictment was announced against Donald Trump and 18 co-conspirators
MPs prepared for a stampede on Monday in the 2020 election case
Sheriff’s deputies were tightening security and installing cordons around the derelict prison Monday when his legal team was spotted entering Willis’s office.
The prison is known for its abject conditions, although Trump is not being held there while he awaits trial.
The notorious insect-infested facility is under investigation by the Justice Department after a string of deaths.
US Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Ryan K. Buchanan opened the investigation last month, saying, “Recent allegations of filthy insect-infested shelters, rampant violence resulting in deaths and injuries, and excessive use of force by officials are of grave concern .’ and warrant a thorough investigation.’