A judge has ruled that parts of a grand jury report into the investigation of alleged crimes committed by former President Donald Trump and his allies in their efforts to reverse Joe Biden’s election victory can be partially released on Thursday, February 16. This comes after the investigation looked into 2020 election interference in Georgia, and Trump is waiting to see how much detail will be made public.
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Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled that the report detailing the investigation into whether the former president and his allies committed crimes in their attempts to reverse Joe Biden’s election victory can be partially released on Thursday, February 16.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is leading the investigation, argued in January against releasing the findings of the special grand jury probe, suggesting it may hinder the inquiry and that a decision on potential criminal charges is “imminent.”
In his eight-page ruling, McBurney said he had to prioritize the public’s right to know about at least the general findings of the probe into the attempts to overturn the 2020 election.
However, McBurney said that any recommendations for criminal charges, which may include the former president, will not be made public on Thursday.
Instead, McBurney said that the report’s introduction and conclusion, which could give hints about a criminal recommendation, and a section that detailed concerns from the special grand jury that “some witnesses may have lied under oath during their testimony”—therefore committing perjury—can be released.
“Having reviewed the final report, the undersigned concludes that the special purpose grand jury did not exceed the scope of its prescribed mission,” McBurney wrote. “Indeed, it provided the District Attorney with exactly what she requested: a roster of who should (or should not) be indicted, and for what, in relation to the conduct (and aftermath) of the 2020 general election in Georgia.”
Noting this line in McBurney’s ruling, Georgia State University College of Law professor Anthony Michael Kreis tweeted that “the writing is on the wall” in regard to an indictment for Trump or his allies.
Kreis said it may be “seems unlikely” that jurors would believe witnesses lied under oath and then not recommend charges be brought forward.
The investigation originally centered on whether Trump committed a crime during his January 2021 phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which the former president asked him to “find” the 11,780 votes needed to beat Biden in the state.
The Fulton County investigation has since widened to include allegations a group of 16 Republicans plotted to send fake Georgia electors to falsely declare Trump the winner in a number of key states in 2020, as well as claims of intimidation of election workers.
Trump has frequently denied any wrongdoing in connection to the investigation, describing his phone call with Raffensberger as “perfect” and accusing Willis of carrying out a “witch hunt” against him.
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