Former United States President Donald Trump has surrendered to Atlanta authorities in relation to the Georgia election case after his official mug shot was released to the public.
The Republican businessman is among 19 defendants who were charged by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. The case involves the defendants' alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
Trump Surrenders to Atlanta Authorities
The other defendants in the case are also in the process of surrendering to authorities and will be booked and released prior to the Friday noon deadline. However, some of the individuals on the list are mounting legal challenges.
Additionally, the Fulton County Sheriff's Office publicly released Trump's mug shot that was taken during his processing. The image is the first mug shot of the former president among his four criminal indictments.
https://t.co/MlIKklPSJT pic.twitter.com/Mcbf2xozsY
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2023
Prior to boarding his plane at Hartsfield-Jackson after traveling to surrender to authorities, the former president, Trump said that he had the right to challenge an election that they believed was dishonest, as ABC News.
The Republican businessman said that they did nothing wrong as he continued to falsely claim that the election had been stolen from him. Trump's bond was set at $200,000 after he was booked and released from the Fulton County Jail.
Trump also twisted accusations and instead claimed that prosecutors were trying to detail his 2024 presidential campaign. He said that what they are doing is considered "election interference."
The Republican businessman's decision to surrender to authorities makes him the supposed 12th individual to do so. Since Tuesday, high-profile allies of the former president have traveled to the Fulton County Jail, including former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and lawyer Sidney Powell.
Georgia Election Case
Before Trump's booking on Thursday, his lawyers argued with Georgia prosecutors regarding the date of when the trial should begin, lawyer Ken Chesebro, one of the former president's co-defendants, filed a motion earlier the day asking for an Oct. 23 start date, which was something that a Georgia judge granted, according to Aljazeera.
Willis followed that ruling by requesting to set that date as the start for all of the 19 defendants included in the Georgia election case. Previously, the Fulton County district attorney suggested the start date of the trial to be March 2024.
On the other hand, Trump's legal team responded by filing a motion to cut his case from Chesebro's. This leads to the possibility that several trials could happen at separate times.
The Georgia election case has 13 separate counts against Trump, which includes a racketeering charge and several fraud and false statement counts. The former president said that he feels sympathy for his co-defendants who were all booked, saying that their "lives are destroyed" because of the criminal charges.
Several hours after being booked in a Georgia county jail, Trump said in an interview that his co-defendants were unfairly dragged into the mess. The former president argued that the people have to be released from the "horrible thing" that they were going through, said CNBC.
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