Sept. 14 (UPI) — Former President Donald Trump does not want to join Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell in an Atlanta court next month, waiving his right to a speedy trial in the Georgia election case.
Trump’s lead attorney, Steven Sadow, filed Trump’s waiver on Wednesday, asking instead for his motion for severance to be considered.
The trial of Chesebro and Powell will begin on Oct. 23. Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee has not ruled on when the other defendants will go on trial on charges they participated in an illegal scheme to overturn the state’s 2020 presidential election results.
Fulton County, Ga., District Attorney Fani Willis filed a post-hearing brief Wednesday, as well. She reiterated the state’s wishes to try all 19 defendants in the election subversion case at the same time, arguing that holding multiple trials would impair efficiency and fairness.
One of Willis’ arguments is that the defendants who are tried at a later date would have the advantage of knowing the prosecution’s case beforehand. It would also create a greater inconvenience, and in some cases trauma, for witnesses who have to repeat their testimony.
The prosecution intends to call more than 150 witnesses to the stand in each trial. The trials are estimated to last four months each. McAfee said he could see a trial this expansive taking up to eight months.
Willis offered more details about what the trial of all 19 defendants would look like. She writes that it would be “feasible” in the Fulton County Courthouse. Multiple, lengthy trials, however, would strain the court’s resources.
“Realistically, holding three or more simultaneous, high-profile trials would create a host of security issues and would create unavoidable burdens on witnesses and victims, who would be forced to testify three or more times on the same set of facts in the same case,” the brief reads.
Defendants who request a speedy trial are entitled to have their trial start either during the current court term or the following term, according to Georgia law. Court terms last two months with the current term beginning in September and the next in November.
Chesebro on Wednesday motioned to have his indictment dismissed. The motion states that every action Chesebro took part in that allegedly interfered with Georgia’s election were justified.
“Mr. Chesebro, being an expert in constitutional law, acted within his capacity as a lawyer in researching and finding precedents in order to form a legal opinion, which was then supplied to his client, the Trump campaign,” Chesebro’s motion says.
