Georgia judge dismisses 6 charges against Trump

Judge Scott McAfee dismissed six of the 41 charges against Mr. Trump and the defendants in the Georgia election-rigging case.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who is presiding over the Georgia election-rigging case, said today that the six charges against former President Donald Trump and the defendants were not detailed enough, according to court records.

Two of the six charges that Judge McAfee dismissed related to a January 2021 phone call in which Mr Trump asked Georgia's top election official Brad Raffensperger to "find" votes to overturn his loss in the state.

Judge McAfee found the indictment did not detail enough how Mr. Trump and his allies might have violated their oath of office or their respective duties under the U.S. and Georgia constitutions.

“They did not provide the defendant with enough information to prepare a defense,” McAfee said, adding that prosecutors could bring a new indictment that would be more detailed on those charges.

Former US President Donald Trump at a court hearing in New York in November 2023. Photo: AFP — Former US President Donald Trump at a court hearing in New York in November 2023. Photo: *AFP*

The list of dismissed charges includes three charges against Mr. Trump. The indictment by Fulton County Prosecutor Fani Willis previously charged 19 people with 41 charges, of which Mr. Trump faced 13 charges. The indictment focuses on acts of intimidation, conspiracy to commit fraud, impersonation of a public official, and submission of false reports and documents related to the results of the 2020 election in the state of Georgia.

Lawyers for Mr Trump and five allies, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, have denied allegations that they tried to get Georgia lawmakers to violate their oath of office by persuading them to appoint a slate of pro-Trump electors.

The Georgia election-overturning lawsuit is one of four criminal prosecutions with 91 charges that Mr. Trump faces.

Two cases involve efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, one from Georgia prosecutors and the other from federal special counsel Jack Smith. In the third case, Smith accuses Trump of improperly retaining classified documents after leaving office, and the fourth is from New York prosecutors over Trump's hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election.

Thanh Tam (According to Reuters, AFP )

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