Two key witnesses are expected to appear before a Georgia grand jury early next week as the possibility of a fourth indictment against former President Donald Trump draws closer.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is in the final stages of her investigation into Trump’s efforts to reverse his defeat in key swing state Georgia.
If he is indicted, it will be the fourth time since March that the 45th President of the United States has been charged with a crime.
Former Georgia Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan, a Republican, will appear Tuesday to testify about Trump’s claims at the ballot count for the 2020 presidential election.
George Chidi, an independent journalist who publishes on Substack, tweeted that his appearance on Tuesday is also scheduled.
Former Georgia Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan (pictured, left) and independent journalist George Chidi (pictured, right) are scheduled to testify before a grand jury in a case evaluating former President Donald Trump’s claims about the 2020 election
“I have just received notification that I am scheduled to appear before the Fulton County grand jury Tuesday morning, and I will certainly be there to do my part in establishing the facts,” Duncan told CNN, where he is a staffer is working.
“I have no expectations of the questions and will certainly answer any questions I’m asked,” he added.
That signals that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis — an elected Democrat — is moving forward with a grand jury presentation where she is expected to indict more than a dozen people resulting from her investigations into the effort that to overturn 2020 election, surrendered.
Their investigations focused on attempts to pressure state election officials, a conspiracy to field fake voters, and a violation of the electoral system in rural Coffee County, Georgia.
The state was the focus of Trump and his allies as they attempted to stay in power after his 2020 election.
The then President was filmed on tape asking Georgian Foreign Minister Brad Raffensperger to help him.
“The people of Georgia are angry, the people of the country are angry,” he said in an audio recording obtained by the Washington Post. “And there’s nothing wrong with saying you know, um, you did the math.”
Raffensperger insisted Trump’s data was incorrect, but the president insisted, “I just want to find 11,780 votes, that’s one more than we have.”
Trump said on Saturday he would never enter into a “plea deal” as Georgia prosecutors prepare to open an investigation into election interference by the former president and his allies before a grand jury early next week.
“We didn’t do anything wrong.” We never make a deal. We don’t do plea deals. “That’s a smart question,” Trump told reporters on the Des Moines airport tarmac after attending the Iowa State Fair.
“We don’t enter into plea deals because we didn’t do anything wrong.” “It’s called election interference,” he said.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is in the final stages of her investigation into Trump’s efforts to reverse his defeat in key swing state Georgia
That signals that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis — an elected Democrat — is moving forward with a grand jury presentation
Police closed streets and patrolled with dogs around the Atlanta courthouse on Monday. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is believed to be in the final stages of her investigation into Trump
If indicted in Fulton County, it would be the fourth time since March that former President Donald Trump has faced criminal charges
Two weeks ago, Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat laid out what he called a “protection plan” for a possible indictment against Trump.
“Our goal is to have all the services that we normally have open and operational, while also creating a secure environment for those we actually serve,” he said at a news conference.
The precautionary measures reflect a divided country entering new territory, with the risk of mass demonstrations or a repeat of the January 6, 2021 violence.
Trump, 77, remains the clear front-runner for the Republican Party nomination in 2024.
But his election plan must now include a series of court hearings.
Last week, he appeared in federal court in Washington to plead not guilty to charges that he conspired to defraud the US by preventing Congress from confirming Democratic President Joe Biden’s victory and doing so deprived US voters of their right to a fair election.
Earlier in the summer it was Miami. There he pleaded not guilty in connection with the handling of government documents and an alleged cover-up.
And in April he turned himself in to authorities in New York, where he’s accused of forging business records as part of a hush money payment to a porn star. He pleaded not guilty in this case.
Now Atlanta could be the next scene of his criminal struggles.
As of Monday, the front of the courthouse had been lined with rows of orange plastic barricades and steel fences.
Food trucks stayed away and the otherwise bustling neighborhood was empty on Monday
There was a heavy police presence outside the courthouse as an indictment was reportedly filed in Fulton County, Georgia this week
An anti-Trump protester made his feelings clear and urged the prosecutor to go ahead
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is in the final stages of her investigation into Trump’s efforts to reverse his defeat in key swing state Georgia
Local media reports that charges are expected later this week.
Willis hasn’t revealed much about the case she’s building, but lawyers familiar with her story assume she’ll invoke Georgia’s crime laws.
It is modeled after the state’s RICO laws, which were introduced to link crime bosses to the crimes committed by their subordinates.