Atlanta security beefed up for Trump case
The streets around the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta where Donald Trump may soon face his fourth criminal indictment were quiet last week as orange barricades and law enforcement created a sense of anticipation.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who has been investigating the former U.S. president’s effort to overturn the 2020 election result in Georgia for 2½ years, is expected to present the case to a grand jury as soon as this week.
In preparation, the street in front of the courthouse was closed, with armed sheriff’s deputies patrolling the area 24/7. Vehicles from several law enforcement agencies lined side streets, while media vans idled next to stacks of bicycle racks used for crowd control.
A criminal case against Trump in Atlanta would be a twist because he doesn’t have an obvious connection to the area the way he does in the other places he has been indicted.
Trump has lived and worked in New York, Washington and Florida, where he is accused of falsifying business records, conspiring to overturn the 2020 election and absconding with classified documents, respectively.
Now he is facing the potential of a drawn-out legal battle in a state that has taken a hardline approach in probing suspected 2020 election fraud. Trump’s actions in Georgia also stood out because of an infamous phone call in which he and his aides tried to pressure Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger into reversing the election loss.
Trump has denied wrongdoing in Georgia and pleaded innocent in other cases. He claims all the investigations are part of a political “witch hunt” to keep him from winning the White House again.
Security measures extended blocks away to the Georgia State Capitol, where the street nearest the entrance was sealed off. The gold-domed building was devoid of tourists and many staffers were working from home amid renovations. At nearby City Hall, no one was seen entering or leaving the building in the middle of a workday, though the office of Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said the city’s headquarters is “open for business.”
One sheriff’s deputy standing guard said he’d never seen such an extensive security operation in 30 years on the job. The officer said one priority will be protecting protesters who may clash with one another if Trump appears in court.
Willis previously said she intends to announce any charges in August and that much of her staff would be working remotely during the first three weeks of the month. She also asked that judges not schedule trials and in-person hearings during part of that time.
A Fulton County indictment would also be the latest test of how the former president is treated by law enforcement when reporting as a criminal defendant. Sheriff Patrick “Pat” Labat said in an Aug. 1 news conference that he isn’t inclined to give Trump special treatment.
“Unless someone tells me differently, we are following our normal practices,” he said. “It doesn’t matter your status. We have mugshots ready for you.”
His office declined to elaborate.
“We don’t want to get ahead of the process,” spokeswoman Natalie Ammons said this week. The sheriff’s office “has considered all possibilities and planned for what may be required of our agency in the event of a possible indictment.”
It would be notable if Trump were handcuffed or had his mugshot taken because such measures were skipped in the other cases, though he was fingerprinted. The Marshals Service in Washington and Florida haven’t required a mugshot because Trump is a recognizable person and many photographs already exist.
A Fulton County case will likely echo allegations in the indictment of Trump in Washington, brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith. Trump is accused in that case of trying to overturn the 2020 election nationwide, and his actions in Georgia feature prominently in the alleged conspiracy.