A Fulton County judge in Georgia has dismissed several counts brought against former President Donald Trump and five others in a case involving an alleged attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The judge ruled that six of the counts in the indictment must be quashed, three of which were against Trump. The other defendants included former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and lawyers Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, Ray Stallings Smith, and Robert Cheeley, all of whom pleaded not guilty.
Trump’s lawyer, Steve Sadow, praised the court’s decision to quash the counts, stating that the prosecution failed to make specific allegations of wrongdoing in those particular counts. He characterized the prosecution of Trump as political, constituting election interference, and called for its dismissal. The six counts related to alleged attempts to solicit state officials to violate their oaths of office, but the judge ruled that the state failed to specify the nature of those violations, leading to the quashing of the charges.
Judge Scott McAfee’s ruling focused on the lack of detail in the allegations, stating that while the charges contained all essential elements of the crimes, they did not provide enough information for the defendants to prepare their defenses intelligently. McAfee emphasized that his decision to quash the six counts did not dismiss the entire indictment, leaving open the possibility for Georgia prosecutors to seek a new indictment supplementing those counts.
Trump faces a total of 13 counts in the racketeering case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in August. Eighteen others were charged alongside Trump for their roles in an alleged scheme to reverse Georgia’s election results, with four accepting plea deals. McAfee is also considering a separate request to disqualify Willis and her office from prosecuting the case due to an alleged improper relationship between Willis and a special prosecutor working on the case.
In addition to the Fulton County case, Trump is facing prosecution in federal and state courts in New York City, Washington, D.C., and South Florida. These cases involve allegations ranging from falsifying business records to mishandling sensitive government documents. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is seeking to delay any trials until after the November presidential election, where he is set to face off against President Biden in a rematch of the 2020 election.
