Donald Trump, co-defendants face Friday surrender deadline in Georgia election case
Aug 21, 2023
Washington DC [US], August 22 : Former US President Donald Trump and his 18 co-defendants in the Georgia election case are expected to surrender by this week’s Friday, The Hill reported.
Fulton County, Ga., District Attorney Fani Willis (D) gave the defendants a deadline of Friday at noon to voluntarily surrender after indicting them last week.
As per the sheriff’s office, all the defendants, including Trump, are expected to surrender at the Fulton County Jail.
According to The Hill, the jail has gained a reputation for its poor conditions. An investigation into the facility was opened by the Justice Department last month over concerns that an individual died there covered in insects and filth.
The sheriff’s office has since announced that another inmate, who was being held on a shoplifting charge, died in the jail Thursday.
The state judge overseeing the case has approved two defendants’ bond agreements.
John Eastman, an attorney involved in strategizing a scheme to submit false slates of pro-Trump electors, agreed to a USD 100,000 bond, and Scott Hall, who is charged in connection with an elections office breach, agreed to a USD 10,000 bond, court filings show.
Willis charged the 19 co-defendants in a 41-count indictment last week focused on racketeering charges. It is the fourth set of criminal charges Trump faces, according to The Hill.
Meanwhile, Trump on Monday agreed to a USD 200,000 bond and other release conditions after his lawyers met with the Fulton County district attorney's office, according to court documents reviewed by CNN.
The release conditions outlined in Trump’s bond order are more extensive than those laid out in the other bond orders approved earlier.
The former president unlike some of his co-defendants, is barred from using social media to target his 18 co-defendants in the case, as well as any witnesses or the 30 unindicted co-conspirators, according to CNN.
Trump now faces a total of 91 charges across four criminal cases. His surrender and arraignment in Georgia are expected to look different from those in his previous three criminal cases.
Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat previously suggested he wants to treat Trump and the others named in the indictment similar to any other defendant. This could mean that they would have mugshots taken and be fingerprinted.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis launched the investigation into Trump and his associates nearly two years ago, reported New York Post.
