A transcript of a phone call between former U.S. President Donald Trump and Brad Raffensperger, Georgia Secretary of State, appears on a video screen through the fourth hearing on the January sixth investigation within the Cannon House Office Constructing on June 21, 2022 in Washington, DC.
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Georgia this week is about to release portions of a special grand jury’s final report on its investigation into possible criminal interference within the state’s 2020 general election, including by former President Donald Trump and his allies.
Three sections of the report — the introduction and conclusion, in addition to a piece discussing concerns about whether any witnesses lied under oath — “are ripe for publication,” Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled Monday morning.
Those portions shall be made public Thursday, giving the parties involved within the matter time to debate possible redactions, McBurney wrote in his order.
The Fulton County court in Atlanta, Georgia, US, on Monday, Feb. 13, 2023.
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“The compelling public interest in these proceedings and the unquestionable value and importance of transparency require their release,” McBurney said, even when that shouldn’t be “convenient for the pacing” of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ ongoing investigation.
But disclosure of the remainder of the report “at the moment shouldn’t be proper,” McBurney wrote, citing due process concerns.
The judge did, nevertheless, confirm that the complete report will include “a roster of who should (or shouldn’t) be indicted, and for what, in relation to the conduct (and aftermath) of the 2020 general election in Georgia.”
It’s unclear when that portion of the report shall be made public. The judge directed the DA’s office to offer periodic updates concerning the status of its probe so he can reassess if other parts of the ultimate report “might be properly disclosed.”
Willis, in a hearing last month, had asked the judge to temporarily keep the report sealed, citing the rights and fair treatment of “future defendants.” Decisions on that matter “are imminent,” she said on the time.
In an announcement Monday afternoon, Willis told NBC News, “I think Judge McBurney’s order is legally sound and consistent with my request. I don’t have any plans to appeal today’s order.”
The special grand jury was seated last May to conduct an investigation into possible efforts to disrupt the 2020 elections in Georgia, and to recommend whether anyone needs to be criminally prosecuted.
After sifting through evidence and hearing testimony from dozens of witnesses — including multiple Trump allies, reminiscent of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. — the grand jury in December submitted its final report, recommending that it’s published.
Georgia was one in all several key swing states that narrowly voted for President Joe Biden, then the Democratic nominee, over Trump within the 2020 presidential election. Trump, his allies and his legal team sought to overturn his loss to Biden in the overall election by difficult the leads to Georgia and other key states.
A flurry of lawsuits filed in late 2020 by Trump’s campaign were almost entirely rejected within the courts. In early January 2021, Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, and urged him to “find” enough votes in his favor to reverse his loss within the Peach State. Raffensperger refused.
