Georgia Judge Dismisses Charges Related to Trump’s Call to ‘Find’ Votes

A judge in Georgia has dismissed some of the charges that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis brought against Donald Trump last year.

Georgia Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Wednesday tossed six charges against the former president and some of his co-defendants, but let the bulk of the criminal racketeering charges stand. McAfee wrote that the prosecution did not provide sufficient rationale for bringing the now-dismissed charges, which pertained to the push to get Georgia officials to delegitimize President Biden’s win in the state — including Trump’s now-infamous call to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which he asked the state’s top election official to “find” the votes he needed to surpass Biden.

The defense argued, successfully, that the prosecution did not go into enough detail regarding the solicitation of violation of oath by public officer charges. “These six counts contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission,” McAfee wrote. “They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the Defendants could have violated the Constitution and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways.”

McAfee left the door open for Willis’ team to refile the charges.

Trump was charged last August with 41 criminal counts, including solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, conspiracy to commit impersonating a public officer, conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree, conspiracy to commit filing false documents, and making false statements and writings.

The case has recently come under intense scrutiny, as Willis has been accused of having an improper relationship with her lead prosecutor, Nathan Wade. Rolling Stone reported in January that Trump and his team have been trying to dig up dirt on Willis in order to derail the case, and the former president hasn’t been afraid to gloat over the scandal jeopardizing her ability to lead it.

McAfee is expected to rule this week on whether Willis can remain in charge. Should Willis be removed, the case could be reassigned to a state prosecutor with a more favorable view of the former president, and public trust in the proceedings would take a massive hit. His decision to dismiss the charges on Wednesday certainly doesn’t help, either.

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