Altanta Prosecutor Empanels ‘Perfect’ Grand Jury To Look Into Trump’s ‘Perfect’ Call To Election Officials

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(Photo by Ali Shaker/VOA)

The Superior Court of Fulton County has approved District Attorney Fani Willis’s request to impanel a grand jury to investigate former President Trump’s efforts to pressure election officials to overturn his loss in the state’s 2020 presidential election.

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Most famously Trump urged Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have, because we won the state” on a January 2 phone call which was recorded and released to the Washington Post a day later. But multiple such efforts at election interference have been reported, including a phone call to Raffensperger by South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.

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In a letter to Chief Judge Christopher Brasher which was published by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, DA Willis declared that there is a “reasonable probability” that the 2020 election had been “subject to possible criminal disruptions,” and that her shop is the only one untainted by the Trump administration’s attempt to ratf*ck the election.

“Our office has also learned that individuals associated with these disruptions have contacted other agencies empowered to investigate this matter, including the Georgia Secretary of State, the Georgia Attorney General, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, leaving this office as the sole agency with jurisdiction that is not a potential witness to conduct related to the matter,” she wrote.

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Under the court’s order, the grand jury will not have the power to issue a criminal indictment. But it will have the authority to issue subpoenas, which Willis says she needs because “a significant number of witnesses and prospective witnesses have refused to cooperate with the investigation absent a subpoena requiring their testimony. By way of example, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, an essential witness to the investigation, has indicated that he will not participate in an interview or otherwise offer evidence until he is presented with a subpoena by my office.”

In light of criticism that Willis should be concentrating on prosecuting so-called “real” crimes, Judge Brasher’s order pointedly notes that “the appointment of a special purpose grand jury will permit the time, efforts, and attention of the regular grand jury(ies) impaneled in this Circuit to continue to be devoted to the consideration of the backlog of criminal matters that has accumulated as a result of the COVID-19 Pandemic.”

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But this caveat failed to mollify the former president.

“My phone call to the Secretary of State of Georgia was perfect, perhaps even more so than my call with the Ukrainian President, if that’s possible,” he shouted into the void in his life where Twitter used to be.

“What this Civil Special Grand Jury should be looking into is not my perfect phone call, but the large scale voter fraud that took place in Georgia,” he continued, living his unlimited-character post-platform best life. “Then they would be doing a great job for the people.  No more political witch hunts!”

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Former US Attorney BJay Pak, who was fired at Trump’s behest because he refused to announce an investigation into non-existent voter fraud in Georgia, could not be reached for comment.

Fulton judges greenlight special grand jury for Trump prob

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Elizabeth Dye lives in Baltimore where she writes about law and politics.

Topics

Crime, Donald Trump, Election Law, Government