by TO grand jury special report on whether then-President Donald Trump and his allies attempted to illegally interfere in the results of the 2020 Georgia election says the grand jury believes some witnesses may have lied under oath.
“The majority of the grand jury believes that one or more witnesses who testified before it may have committed perjury,” reads a section of the report released Thursday. “The grand jury recommends that the District Attorney seek appropriate indictments for such crimes where the evidence is compelling.”
The newly released portions of the report also reveal new information about the scale of the investigation, but shed no light on who the grand jury believes should be indicted and why, other than perjury.
The report says the grand jury “received evidence from or involving 75 witnesses during the course of this investigation, the vast majority of whom the information was delivered in person under oath.”
It also says that the panel “heard extensive testimony on the subject of alleged voter fraud from poll workers, investigators, technical experts, and employees and officials of the State of Georgia, as well as from individuals who still assert that such fraud occurred. there was no widespread fraud.”
In an addendum to the report that was also released, the jury foreman and deputy foreman noted that the panel “voted to recommend that the Final Report of the Special Purpose Grand Jury be released,” but “did not recommend a way or time to said publication”.
A coalition of media outlets argued that the full report should be released now, but Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’s office argued that it should remain secret for now.
Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney said in a ruling this week that he would unseal portions of the report that would not include the grand jury’s recommendations on specific potential indictments because of due process concerns.
McBurney ruled Monday that three parts of the grand jury’s final report must be made public: the introduction, the conclusion and a section in which jurors raised concerns that some witnesses may have lied under oath.
The judge said that “the compelling public interest in these proceedings and the unquestionable value and importance of transparency require their publication.”
McBurney revealed that the special purpose grand jury had completed its work in a separate ruling last month officially dissolving the panel.
The panel was convened last year as part of Willis’ investigation into whether there were “coordinated attempts to unlawfully tamper with the outcome of the 2020 election” in the state by Trump and his allies.
The grand jury was tasked with investigating “‘facts and circumstances relating directly or indirectly to potential attempts to disrupt the lawful administration of the 2020 election in the State of Georgia’ and preparing a report on whether anyone should be prosecuted for such potential”. crimes,” McBurney recounted in his ruling last month.
The special purpose grand jury is different from a typical grand jury in that instead of issuing indictments, it presents its findings to the district attorney, who will then make the decision to present evidence to a grand jury on criminal charges.
In his ruling Monday, McBurney said the panel had “provided the district attorney exactly what she requested: a list of who should (or should not) be charged and why, in relation to the conduct (and the consequences). ) of the 2020 general election.”
Willis summoned the grand jury last year because he has the power to issue subpoenas to compel witnesses to testify. The panel heard from dozens of witnesses, court documents show. Among those questioned about their alleged involvement in efforts to overturn the results in the state were Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani and 16 people who served as “alternate electors” in the state.
When asked Thursday about the grand jury’s perjury concerns, Graham told reporters: “I’m sure I testified openly and honestly.”
Also testifying were Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, Republicans who had been pressured by Trump and his allies to rig the outcome of the 2020 election.
Among the incidents Willis is looking at is Trump’s January 2, 2021 phone call with Raffensperger, in which he urged the state’s top election official to annul Joe Biden’s victory. “All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have. Because we won the state,” Trump said on the call.
Trump called that phone call “perfect” and denounced the Willis investigation as a “witch hunt.”
in a mail last month on his social media platform Truth Social, he said the Secretary of State’s “call challenged electoral integrity, or lack thereof, which is my right/duty.”
McBurney noted that the grand jury “certified that it voted to recommend that its report be released.”
mark murray , Alexandra Marquez, Bridget Bowman, ben kamisar, alana satlin and daniel barnes contributed.
