Trump's downfall as 'defence takes big hit' from deals struck by co-conspirators
After four guilty pleas and matching deals to go with them, former President Donald Trump's prospects in the historic racketeering and 2020 election interference indictment in Fulton County, Georgia, aren't looking so good, a criminal defence attorney says.
Those four defendants could bust open Trump's entire defence, Keith B. Johnson told TheMirror.com, which might finally mean the end of the real estate mogul who is also the Republican forerunner for the presidency ahead of the 2024 election.
"One of Donald Trump's main arguments that we've heard and that we anticipate is that he was relying on the information of his advisors, mainly attorneys who are proficient in election law, and that there were inconsistencies in voting patterns and/or results," Johnson said, "and that he was relying on their legal advice and in no way trying to get an individual to change the results."
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Four defendants accepted plea deals in Georgia and agreed to testify in future trials involving their co-defendants (AP)But he said that argument "takes a big hit" when those defendants, three of whom are Trump's former attorneys, can testify and detail their communications with the businessman as he allegedly worked frivolously to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, which saw his opponent, Democrat Joe Biden, wrest the Oval Office from him.
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"Their testimony is going to likely be that they were aware that he badly lost the state of Georgia and that they were coming up with a plan or a scheme of some sort to have those election results challenged and that it was without merit," Johnson explained. "It will then become an issue of credibility and who a jury will believe."
Trump and 18 of his co-conspirators — including former New York City mayor and Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and several other former Trump lawyers — were charged with a collection of 41 felonies in August, all under Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). The former president himself was charged with 13 of those felonies.
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Trump and Fulton County Attorney General Fani Willis have been facing off for months in interviews and in court. The case could be a career-maker for Willis (AFP via Getty Images)In October, lawyer Sidney Powell became the second defendant to plead guilty, admitting to six misdemeanours outlined in the case, which accused her of intentionally interfering with the performance of election duties. As part of the deal she accepted, she was sentenced to six years of probation, handed a $6,000 fine, and is being required to write an apology letter to Georgia and its residents. She is also compelled to testify in all future trials involving her co-defendants. She already recorded a statement for prosecutors.
Lawyer Kenneth Chesebro quickly followed suit, pleading guilty to a felony charge relating to conspiracy to file false documents. Prosecutors dismissed his other charges, and he was sentenced to five years of probation, 100 hours of community service and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine. He was also ordered to write a similar apology letter and testify at future trials.
Jenna Ellis was one of three lawyers who accepted a plea deal, and her testimony could be groundbreaking in the case (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)About four days later, lawyer and media figure Jenna Ellis pleaded guilty as well to a felony count of aiding and abetting false statements and writings and received the same penalties as Chesebro.
The fourth of the individuals to plead guilty and receive a deal was a bail bondsman, Scott Graham Hall, who was also given five years of probation and compelled to testify in future hearings after admitting to several misdemeanours. He was the first to accept a deal back in September.
Jenna Ellis was the fourth of the defendants who pleaded guilty and accepted deals in the Georgia indictment. Her tearful court appearance came after this sunny mugshot taken of her in August (AP)"The more witnesses that you have who don’t actually have any animosity toward the former president and who were actually on his team — I think it makes the testimony that they provide more compelling because they don’t have a motive to lie," Johnson said of the four defendants with plea deals. He noted that the defence might argue that they would be compelled to lie because their plea deals depend on favourable testimony, but he said the fact that defendants are "lining up to testify against the former president" in the first place is "concerning" for him and his legal team.
Another massive component of the plea deals they accepted was that they are being allowed to keep their law licenses, which is possible in part under the First Offender Act in the state, which will redact felony and other charges from an individual's record if they comply with the terms of their deals.
Lawyer Kenneth Chesebro was the third to plead guilty and accept a deal, doing so mere days after Sidney Powell (ALYSSA POINTER/POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)"First Offender would allow these attorneys to continue with their law practice because they would not be allowed to continue to practice law if they had a felony conviction," Johnson explained. "That is a very, very big carrot that the Fulton County prosecutors provided for these defendants, who are professional individuals who know that a felony could totally devastate their careers."
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"As well because as an attorney, you don’t expect to become a defendant with your client," he added. "You expect to advocate for your client, and you expect when the case is over or when the legal matter is over to go back to your other business."
Chesebro and the other plea deal defendants were largely sentenced to community service, probation and might be allowed to continue practicing law after their sentence is up (Fulton County Sheriff'S Office/ZUMA Press Wire Service/REX/Shutterstock)Ultimately, he said prioritising their careers would be in the defendants' better interests than remaining loyal to Trump. And he said they'd be compelled to tell the truth because lying on the stand could see them charged with perjury, which would have them thrown back in court, their plea deals erased and the felony counts two admitted placed back on their records permanently.
Johnson noted that the defendants might also have access to documents and records including emails and phone calls with Trump that could implicate him in the case.
Sidney Powell was the second to plead guilty and take a deal, just a day before a jury was set to be selected for her trial (FULTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE/A)"The more information that these co-conspirators could provide that would outline their statements that President Trump knew that this was false information but he still continued to pursue it, the stronger their testimony will be," he said, also noting that the defence might call that information protected under attorney-client privilege. "It will likely come down to not just their testimony but what they can outline and/or provide that showed in real-time what Mr. Trump knew.”
The case, no matter the outcome, likely won't have any implications on the state of Georgia's laws, but Johnson did say it could set precedents and impact how the laws are interpreted in the future.
"I would expect that there is a guilty verdict after a trial, and the defendants will appeal that verdict, and it may result in the Georgia Supreme Court being involved in the interpretation of the racketeering statute, which is like an organized crime statute," Johnson said. "It will also serve as a deterrent in the future to show that even high-profile individuals with a lot of access are being held accountable by prosecutors throughout the country."
The trial will play out at the Fulton County Courthouse on March 4, 2024 (Getty Images)He also said the case's timeline is interesting, as it's playing out as Trump vies for another presidency in 2024. If the proceedings drag out to around the time of the election next November, he said it will be interesting to see how prosecutors and judges, if the case has already concluded, will act.
"If we get to a situation where we’re late into next year, do prosecutors proceed forward with the case if he is president-elect or if he is the Republican nominee? Is there some kind of push, if he is convicted, to [let him] out on bond, which could be ordered while the case is being appealed to a higher court?" Johnson pondered.
A historic mugshot of Trump was taken when he appeared at the Fulton County Courthouse in August (AP)It may also take several months for an impartial jury to be selected, as everyone knows the former president and likely has strong opinions about him. That could delay the process, which Johnson said would benefit Trump and his legal team, especially amid the 2024 election.
"Everybody's watching," he said of the case. "Our justice system in the United States will be put to the test, with the co-equal branches of government on display."
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