Georgia Grand Jury Recommends Charges Against Senators and Trump Allies

ATLANTA – A special grand jury in Fulton County, Georgia, has issued recommendations for criminal charges against three U.S. senators, including Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and former Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, who were allied with former President Donald Trump, according to a report released on Friday.

The Fulton County special grand jury, while lacking the authority to issue indictments, also suggested charges against former national security adviser Michael Flynn, attorney Lin Wood, and Trump aide Boris Epshteyn. The grand jury referred to a statute alleging the commission of a crime without specifying the exact offense.

Furthermore, the report recommended charges against all 16 Republican alternate electors who convened in support of Trump, despite President Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia. Among those, only three electors, along with Trump, were indicted: Georgia Republican Party Chairman David Shafer, state Sen. Shawn Still, and Cathy Latham.

The special grand jury’s report also proposed charges against election lawyer Cleta Mitchell, alleging she influenced a witness’s testimony, made false statements, solicited election fraud, and interfered with election duties.

However, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis did not pursue charges against any of these individuals when the grand jury returned an indictment against Trump and 18 others in August. The special grand jury’s report acknowledged that Willis would only seek indictments with sufficient cause, and it also noted the absence of election law experts or criminal lawyers among its members.

Sen. Graham, the former chairman of the Judiciary Committee in 2020, expressed concern about the potential criminalization of his work as a legislator. He had made inquiries in Georgia and other states regarding the 2020 election but found no evidence of widespread voter fraud, though he raised concerns about mail-in ballots.

Former Sen. Loeffler asserted that she had no regrets about representing her state and giving voice to Americans who felt disenfranchised in 2020. She characterized the situation as an attempt to imprison a leading political opponent ahead of the 2024 elections, labeling it “election interference.”

Former President Trump, responding to the report, criticized it as having “ZERO credibility” and accused it of seeking to indict anyone “who happened to be breathing at the time.” He contended that the report undermined the credibility of its findings.

The special grand jury had been investigating Trump from June to December 2022. A preliminary report in February recommended perjury charges against some witnesses but did not find widespread election fraud.

The full report was released by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney. In August, a grand jury indicted Trump and 18 co-defendants on charges related to a conspiracy to steal the 2020 election. All 19 co-defendants have pleaded not guilty, with trial dates set for later this year.

Meanwhile, at least five of the defendants have requested to transfer their cases to federal court, where U.S. District Judge Steve Jones is considering their petitions.

The special grand jury’s report, unlike the indictment against Trump and his allies, did not provide detailed reasons for its recommendations but rather listed potential targets and the statutes they may have violated. The individuals recommended for charges included Perdue and Loeffler, who campaigned with Trump in 2020, Flynn and Epshteyn, who were Trump advisers, and Mitchell, a veteran Republican campaign lawyer involved in Trump’s January 2, 2021, call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which Trump urged him to “find” enough votes to win the election.