Rudy Giuliani, 6 others plead not guilty to Georgia election interference charges

Sept. 1 (UPI) -- Former New York City mayor and Donald Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani on Friday pleaded not guilty to charges of undermining the 2020 presidential election, along with six other co-defendants.

Giuliani faces 13 charges in Fulton County, Ga., including soliciting a public officer to violate their oath, and a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations charge for his efforts to overturn the results of the election.

Prosecutors say Giuliani spread election lies when he appeared before state lawmakers three times after the general election in December 2020.

According to prosecutors, Giuliani's attempts to intimidate election officials were not limited to Georgia, as the former mayor tried to influence officials in Michigan, Arizona and Pennsylvania.

Giuliani was scheduled to appear at an arraignment hearing on Tuesday but entered his plea via a court filling and waived his right to a hearing, which under Georgia law allows him to avoid the hearing.

On Thursday, Judge Scott McAfee confirmed that media will be allowed to broadcast from the trial and that the proceedings will be televised.

Former President Trump pleaded not guilty to charges related to efforts to intimidate Georgia election officials Thursday.

One of the other six co-defedants to enter pleas on Friday, lawyer Kenneth Chesebro, pleaded not guilty and waived his right to an arraignment hearing.

Chesebro was the author of a Dec. 6, 2020, memo outlining a plot to use Trump supporters as fake electors, saying this plan "would guarantee that public attention would be riveted on the evidence of electoral abuses by the Democrats, and would also buy the Trump campaign more time to win litigation that would deprive Biden of electoral votes."

The other co-defendants to enter pleas on Friday included Trump lawyer Robert Cheeley, who pleaded not guilty and waived his right to an arraignment hearing. He is facing charges in 10 state crimes, including violating Georgia's RICO law, perjury and soliciting a public officer to violate their oath.

Illinois pastor Stephen Lee, who faces five counts tied to the intimidation of an Atlanta election worker, pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors say Lee tried to pressure Atlanta election worker Ruby Freeman into falsely admitting that she committed voting fraud against Trump in the election. Freeman called 911 after Lee knocked on her front door in December 2020, authorities said.

Additionally, Mike Roman, Harrison Floyd and Scott Hall also pleaded not guilty Friday and waived their right to arraignment hearings. Roman is an ex-Trump campaign official, Floyd lead the group Black Voices for Trump, and Hall is a bail bondsman in Georgia.

The Georgia charges are the fourth criminal case against Trump, following a federal case related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election resulting in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol; a federal case alleging he mishandled classified documents at his Palm Beach, Fla., estate after leaving office; and a New York fraud case related to hush-money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels.