Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis urged an Atlanta judge on Tuesday to keep the findings of a Georgia grand jury inquiry over former United States President Donald Trump's election interference to remain sealed.
She also recommended multiple indictments related to the issue and added that her decision on whether or not to bring charges against the former president is "imminent." The Democrat said during a hearing in Atlanta that she was opposed to making the findings of the investigation public, citing her ongoing deliberations on charges.
Georgia Grand Jury's Report
Willis added that they wanted to ensure everyone was treated fairly in the case, saying that for future defendants to be treated as such, it was not appropriate to release the report findings at this time.
The Georgia special grand jury, barred from issuing indictments against Trump, considered the final report as a culmination of its work that lasted seven months. It included interviews with witnesses from Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, as per CNN.
The Atlanta DA also said on Tuesday that the special grand jury heard from 75 witnesses for the case. The panel's final report was expected to include some summary of their investigative work. It would also have recommendations for indictments and the alleged conduct that led investigators to their conclusions.
Fulton County's chief senior assistant district attorney, Donald Wakeford, argued to the judge that it would be dangerous to release the report before an announcement about potential charges is made.
He said that it is dangerous to the people who may or may not be named in the special grand jury's report for various reasons. Wakeford said that it would be a disservice to the witnesses who came forward to the grand jury and spoke about their truths to the panel.
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Donald Trump's Alleged Election Interference
There are nearly 20 people who were named targets of the criminal investigation that could face charges. The list includes Giuliani and David Shafer, the head of the Georgia Republican Party. Trump's legal team released a statement this week, noting that "the grand jury compelled the testimony of dozens of other, often high-ranking, officials during the investigation, but never found it important to speak with the President," according to the New York Times.
The statement noted that neither the panel nor anyone in the Fulton County District Attorney's Office ever subpoenaed Trump nor asked the former president to come in voluntarily. They said that they took this as a sign that the grand jury did their job and looked at the facts and the law, and concluded that there were no violations of the law by the Republican businessman.
The situation comes as Trump's attorneys did not appear at a Georgia hearing on Tuesday when a judge was expected to issue a decision for the public release of the report. Atlanta attorneys Drew Findling and Marissa Goldberg released a brief statement saying that they have never been a part of the process, according to USA Today.
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