Judge sets $200,000 bond for Trump in Georgia election case
WASHINGTON — Former President Trump’s bond in the Fulton County, Ga., indictment over efforts to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election results is set at $200,000. The terms of his release include extra prohibitions on witness intimidation and other restrictions.
Trump and the 18 others indicted in the case have until noon Friday to surrender to authorities in the racketeering case brought by Fulton County Dist. Atty. Fani Willis in connection with attempts to keep Trump in power after he lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden. The defendants are expected to be arraigned in early September.
The terms of Trump’s release, which were set by a judge and made public Monday, include instructions to not make direct or indirect threats — including through social media — against potential witnesses, victims or the unindicted co-conspirators mentioned, but not named, in the indictment. He has also been ordered to not communicate about the facts of the case with any known witnesses except through legal counsel.
“Defendant may post bond as cash, through commercial surety, or through the Fulton County Jail 10% program,” the order states.
Trump is charged with racketeering and a dozen other felonies, including solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, conspiracy to commit forgery and making false statements and writings.
The indictment alleges a massive effort to disrupt the 2020 presidential election in Fulton County, elsewhere in Georgia and in other states, including by making false representations in court as well as false accusations by Trump and others against a pair of poll workers, along with attempts to misuse the Justice Department to try to convince state lawmakers to overturn the results.
The indictment lays out a plan to have a slate of fake electors meet in secret at the Georgia Capitol to cast votes for Trump despite Biden having won a majority of votes in the state, and to use the competing slates of electors to throw Georgia’s result into turmoil when Congress met Jan. 6, 2021, to certify the election results.
Trump has said that his actions were not illegal and that the investigation was politically motivated.
Also on Monday, bond was set at $100,000 for former Trump election lawyer and California professor John Eastman, who has been charged with pressuring then-Vice President Mike Pence to delay Congress’ certification of the results or to throw out Georgia’s votes; and for Kenneth Chesebro, who is accused of organizing the fake electors scheme.
Bond was set at $10,000 for Scott Hall, a Georgia bail bondsman accused of helping facilitate access to the Coffee County, Ga., election system by a team working for Trump’s allies.
In addition, bond was set at $50,000 for Georgia lawyer Ray Smith, who led legal challenges in the state for the Trump campaign.
The witness restrictions were not included in the bond orders for Eastman, Chesebro, Hall or Smith.