The judge presiding over the Georgia election subversion case said Monday he's unlikely to let Donald Trump's co-defendants ask potential jurors for their views on the former president's attempt to "steal the election," the impact of "political misinformation" on US democracy and the extremism of "MAGA Republicans."
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee revealed at a hearing Monday that lawyers for the first two defendants going to trial -- pro-Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro and former Trump campaign lawyer Sidney Powell -- wanted to include these politically charged inquiries in the questionnaire that will be given to potential jurors in the case.
Jury selection is scheduled to begin later this week. A total of 900 prospective jurors have been asked to report to the Fulton County courthouse, including 450 on Friday and the rest next week.
The judge was highly skeptical of the request and pointed out that there are "decades of case law telling us that we're not supposed to be asking jurors to give their opinion upfront." Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' team also encouraged McAfee to exclude these items from the jury questionnaire.
Chesebro attorney Scott Grubman said the questions were essential to "getting to the true question" of whether the jurors can be "fair and impartial," instead of simply asking if they can be fair, yes or no.
According to McAfee, the defendants want to ask potential jurors for their feelings about each of the following statements:
"I think that Trump and his associates tried to steal the election and throw out my vote.""I think the First Amendment should not protect people who spread political misinformation about elections.""I think every single person who is accused of helping Donald Trump try to overturn the election should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.""I think MAGA Republicans are mostly made up of radicals and White supremacists.""I think anyone who publicly claimed that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump is guilty of spreading misinformation that undermines our democracy."
The judge didn't say when he'll issue a final ruling on the questionnaire.
Both Chesebro and Powell have pleaded not guilty. Chesebro is accused of helping orchestrate the fake electors plot and Powell is charged with crimes stemming from the Coffee County voting system breach. They are the first of the 19 defendants to go to trial, because they invoked their right to a speedy trial.
McAfee said Monday that he'll tell potential jurors that the trial is expected to last about five months. That means the trial would overlap with the opening months of the 2024 GOP primaries, including the Iowa caucuses in January, Super Tuesday in early March and likely the Georgia primary on March 12.
Trump's trial is not yet scheduled. One defendant, bail bondsman Scott Hall, has already pleaded guilty and agreed to testify for the prosecution at the trials.
