Georgia judge rejects former Trump attorney’s bid to undo guilty plea in election case – JURIST

A Georgia state judge on Friday shut down an effort by former Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro to undo his guilty plea in the state’s election interference case involving President-elect Donald Trump and his allies.

Judge Scott McAfee of the Fulton County Superior Court denied Chesebro’s motion on multiple grounds, calling it “[p]rocedurally defective in more ways than one.” Judge McAfee noted that the defendant had already entered a plea of guilt and thus a “plea in bar,” a tool typically used before trial to challenge an indictment, was an unsuitable legal remedy at this stage of the proceedings.

The judge found that no final judgment had ever been rendered against Chesebro because he was sentenced under the First Offender Act, a status that does not immediately count as a conviction. The window to withdraw the guilty plea or file a valid motion in arrest of judgment had also long expired, depriving the court of jurisdiction to revisit the matter. The court further emphasized that maintaining finality in judicial decisions is essential. Since Chesebro’s sentence was within legal limits, and no final judgment was ever formally entered, there were no grounds to consider it void.

Chesebro was initially charged alongside Trump and 17 co-defendants for attempting to overturn the 2020 US presidential election results in Trump’s favor. The indictment alleged that the defendants attempted to exert influence over political officials, harassed election workers, stole election data, and obstructed the investigation that led to the indictment.

Chesebro struck a last-minute plea deal with prosecutors just before his trial last year, which was set to be the first to go before a jury. Chesebro pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit filing false documents, and prosecutors agreed to dismiss the remaining six charges against him.

Chesebro sought to undo the deal last week, arguing that his guilty plea should be voided. He claimed that Judge McAfee had struck several charges from the indictment back in September, including the very charge to which Chesebro pleaded guilty.