Trump's bid to quash Georgia probe rejected by judge as charges loom
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[August 01, 2023]
By Joseph Ax
(Reuters) -A Georgia judge on Monday rejected former U.S. President
Donald Trump's bid to quash an investigation into whether he illegally
interfered with the state's 2020 election, just days before criminal
charges are expected to be filed.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney denied Trump's
request to disqualify the lead prosecutor, block any potential
indictments and throw out a special grand jury report that included
recommendations on whom to charge.
The report has remained sealed under McBurney's orders pending charges
in the case, one of many legal troubles Trump faces. Separately in
Miami, a Trump aide appeared in federal court on Monday to face charges
he tried to help the former president hide classified documents by
deleting security camera footage.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has indicated she intends to
ask a grand jury to approve charges sometime in the next three weeks,
telling judges that her staff will mostly work remotely as a safety
precaution.
Security barricades were erected outside the county courthouse last
week.
Trump has denied any wrongdoing and accused Willis, an elected Democrat,
of political motives. A spokesperson and his Georgia-based legal team
did not respond to requests for comment.
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A spokesperson for Willis declined to comment. In an interview with an
Atlanta-based NBC affiliate on Saturday, Willis said her office was
prepared to seek charges.
"The work is accomplished," she told WXIA. "We've been working for 2-1/2
years. We're ready to go."
Trump's lawyers have filed a separate long-shot bid to disqualify Willis
that will be heard by another judge next week. That motion was assigned
to a judge from another county because it names McBurney in addition to
Willis; as a result, all Fulton County judges were recused from hearing
it.
Willis has been investigating Trump's attempt to reverse the 2020
election outcome since January 2021, shortly after Trump was recorded on
a phone call asking the state's top election official to "find" enough
votes to overturn Democrat Joe Biden's victory.
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![](../images/080123PIX/news_a68.jpg)
Former U.S. President and Republican
presidential candidate Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during the
Turning Point Action Conference in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.
July 15, 2023. REUTERS/Marco Bello/File Photo
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The wide-ranging probe has also examined the conduct of Trump's
attorneys, including Rudy Giuliani, and a group of individuals who
served as alternate electors in an unsuccessful effort to have the
state's electoral votes awarded to Trump rather than Biden.
The special grand jury was convened at Willis's request to aid in
her investigation. The jury, which had subpoena power but not the
authority to issue charges, heard testimony from dozens of
witnesses.
Trump has falsely claimed the election in Georgia and elsewhere was
marred by widespread fraud, despite dozens of court rulings finding
no evidence to support it.
In his nine-page decision, McBurney said Trump's bid to block the
probe was premature, given that no charges had yet been filed, and
that he would have ample opportunity to challenge the propriety of
the investigation if and when he faces an indictment.
McBurney also said Trump had not shown Willis had acted in a biased
fashion, despite granting press interviews and tweeting about the
case.
"The drumbeat from the district attorney has been neither partisan
(in the political sense) nor personal, in marked and refreshing
contrast to the stream of personal invective flowing from one of the
movants," he wrote.
(Reporting by Joseph Ax in New York; Additional reporting by Rami
Ayyub in Washington; Editing by Howard Goller and Lisa Shumaker)
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