Former US President Donald Trump will surrender this Thursday to the authorities of the state of Georgia, in the framework of a criminal process in which he is accused of trying to reverse his defeat in the 2020 presidential elections.
On Tuesday, the former US ruler (2017-2021) gave this guarantee through a message posted on his social network (Truth Social).
In the message, Trump said that his “trip” (this Thursday) to the city of Atlanta was not going to be for having committed any murder, but for having “made a perfect call.”
The former president was referring to one of the main assets of the prosecution: the recording in which Trump asks the Secretary of State of Georgia, Brad Raffensperger, to “find” enough votes to win in that state, with the aim of impeaching the then candidate. Democratic Presidential, current President Joe Biden, from the White House.
The phone call in question was made on January 2, 2021.
After turning himself in to authorities, Trump is expected to be released from the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta after hearing the terms of the indictment and completing court proceedings.
This is the fourth criminal case against the former president of the United States and the second in which he is accused of trying to subvert the results of the vote.
On Monday, Trump’s bail in this process was set at $200,000 (about 184,000 euros).
In addition to being released on bail, the former governor and current candidate for the 2024 presidential nomination is prohibited from contacting and intimidating other defendants or witnesses to the process, including on social media.
The Republican has a notorious history of attacking the prosecutors leading cases against him, including the district attorney in charge of this case, Fani Willis.
The prosecutor set a deadline of Friday at noon (5:00 p.m. in Lisbon) for Trump and the 18 remaining defendants in the case to turn themselves in to the Fulton County jail to be notified.
Also among those charged are former Trump personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, as well as his former chief of staff, Mark Meadows.
Willis proposed that the defendants be arraigned the week of September 5 and that the case go to trial in March.
Upon arrival at the prison, the tycoon, who has daily protection from the US secret services, will be able to access a restricted area for security reasons.
In his previous appearances before state courts in New York and federal courts in Miami and Washington, Trump was not handcuffed while in court custody.
He was also not required to pose for a photograph, and authorities used existing photographs of the former president to proceed with the search.
The Fulton County Jail, opened in 1989, had more than 3,200 inmates earlier this year, well over capacity (about 2,700 inmates).
In a fundraising email sent Tuesday, Trump criticized the prison’s overcrowding, describing it as a “humanitarian crisis” and “a violent prison.”
Source: TSF
