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A former Trump attorney may testify about Donald Trump's interference in Georgia's 2020 presidential election result, a former federal prosecutor has said.
CNN reported that attorney Kenneth Chesebro is cooperating with authorities in Georgia and at least three other states. Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, faces a total of 91 felony charges in four separate criminal cases, two of which are federal. The former president has pleaded not guilty to all charges maintaining his innocence, accusing prosecutors of a political "witch hunt" against him.
On Thursday, Vance wrote in her blog, Civil Discourse, that Chesebro may testify about conversations in the White House when Trump was trying to overturn the 2020 election result.
Vance said Chesebro told Atlanta prosecutors he met with Donald Trump in the White House on December 16, 2020, and had other key meetings with Trump advisors.
"If—and I think it's still a big if—he's committed to testifying truthfully, may be able to offer direct evidence of Trump's involvement," said Vance.
On Friday, CNN reported that Chesebro is now cooperating with Michigan and Wisconsin investigators in hopes of avoiding more criminal charges.
Chesebro's cooperation in Wisconsin is the first indication the state attorney general's office has launched its own investigation into election fraud.
Chesebro also recently testified to a grand jury in Nevada, where indictments against six fake electors were announced on Wednesday by state prosecutors.
"Additionally, Chesebro has been in contact with prosecutors in Arizona, where he plans to sit for an interview as part of that state's ongoing investigation into fake electors," CNN reported.
Atlanta District Attorney Fani Willis is overseeing the case against Trump and was the first district attorney to bring charges against Trump and Chesebro. An Atlanta indictment unsealed in August accuses Trump and 18 other defendants—including Chesebro; Rudy Giuliani; Trump's former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows; former Justice Department lawyer Jeffrey Clark; and former Georgia Republican Chairman David Shafer—of a large-scale conspiracy to steal the 2020 election.
Of the 19 indicted, four, including Chesebro, have accepted a plea deal and agreed to testify if needed.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all 13 counts he faces. Newsweek sought email comment from Trump's attorney on Friday.
In a three-hour videotaped interview with prosecutors on October 20, reported The Washington Post, Chesebro described a December 16, 2020, Oval Office meeting he attended with several attorneys involved in the effort to challenge the election result in Wisconsin and recalls telling Trump that January 6, 2021, was the "real deadline" for overturning the election result.
He also recalled joining the large group of Trump supporters as they marched toward the U.S. Capitol building on January 6. He walked near the building at the same time as right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. "I randomly arrived at the same time he did," Chesebro told prosecutors.
Chesebro repeatedly said he did not know what was happening on Capitol Hill. He saw nobody entering the building and saw no violence. He told prosecutors that he "wandered" around for "an hour, an hour and a half," before going back to the Trump Hotel, where he saw footage of the attack.
"It was the worst possible thing that could happen," he said.
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About the writer
Sean O'Driscoll is a Newsweek Senior Crime and Courts Reporter based in Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. law. ... Read more