Current:Home > NewsKenneth Chesebro rejected plea offer ahead of Georgia election trial: Sources -Capitatum
Kenneth Chesebro rejected plea offer ahead of Georgia election trial: Sources
NovaQuant Quantitative Think Tank Center View
Date:2025-04-05 21:35:48
One of former President Donald Trump's co-defendants in the Georgia election interference case rejected a plea deal from prosecutors ahead of his trial this month, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
Attorney Kenneth Chesebro, one of the 18 defendants charged alongside Trump in Fulton County case racketeering case, rejected an offer from prosecutors, the sources said.
The deal would have allowed Chesebro to avoid prison time by pleading guilty to one felony count of racketeering, the top charge in the indictment, according to the sources.
MORE: Jury selection to begin Friday in first Georgia election interference trial
He would have had to agree to testify against his codefendants -- including Trump -- in exchange for three years' probation and a $10,000 fine.
The terms of the deal also included a written letter of apology, the sources said. The deal would have been made under Georgia's first-offender act, under which the conviction would have been wiped from Chesebro's record after probation was completed.
Chesebro rejected the deal in late September, the sources said. He is facing seven counts after allegedly drafting a strategy to use so-called "alternate electors" to prevent Joe Biden from receiving 270 electoral votes in the 2020 presidential election, according to the indictment.
An attorney for Chesebro declined to comment to ABC News. A spokesperson for the Fulton County district attorney's office also declined to comment.
Chesebro's trial, alongside co-defendant Sidney Powell, is set to begin this week after the pair opted for a speedy trial. Jury selection gets underway on Friday.
Earlier in September, a Fulton County prosecutor indicated in court that they intended to extend deals to Chesebro and Powell ahead of trial.
"We'll sit down and kind of put some things together and we'll reach out to defense counsel individually to extend an offer," said prosecutor Nathan Wade when pressed by the judge.
Later that day, one of the 19 charged in the indictment became the first to accept a deal in the case. Scott Hall pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with performance of election duties in exchange for immunity and a fine, and agreed to testify against Trump and others.
In early October, ABC News reported that a number of the defendants in the Fulton County case had received plea deal offers or had been approached about potentially making a deal by the district attorney's office, multiple sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
Trump and 18 others pleaded not guilty in August to all charges in a sweeping racketeering indictment for alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia.
The former president has blasted the district attorney's investigation as being politically motivated.
veryGood! (965)
Related
- Working Well: When holidays present rude customers, taking breaks and the high road preserve peace
- Tiger King star Doc Antle convicted of wildlife trafficking in Virginia
- Climate Science Discoveries of the Decade: New Risks Scientists Warned About in the 2010s
- Gov. Rejects Shutdown of Great Lakes Oil Pipeline That’s Losing Its Coating
- SFO's new sensory room helps neurodivergent travelers fight flying jitters
- Will China and the US Become Climate Partners Again?
- Keystone XL Pipeline Has Enough Oil Suppliers, Will Be Built, TransCanada Says
- Farewell, my kidney: Why the body may reject a lifesaving organ
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- Vanderpump Rules Reunion Part One: Every Bombshell From the Explosive Scandoval Showdown
Ranking
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Robert Ballard found the Titanic wreckage in 1985. Here's how he discovered it and what has happened to its artifacts since.
- FDA changes rules for donating blood. Some say they're still discriminatory
- American Climate: A Shared Experience Connects Survivors of Disaster
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- Beyoncé Honors Tina Turner's Strength and Resilience After Her Death
- Ryan Gosling Reveals the Daily Gifts He Received From Margot Robbie While Filming Barbie
- Kelsea Ballerini Takes Chase Stokes to Her Hometown for Latest Relationship Milestone
Recommendation
Behind on your annual reading goal? Books under 200 pages to read before 2024 ends
Greenland’s Nearing a Climate Tipping Point. How Long Warming Lasts Will Decide Its Fate, Study Says
Sample from Bryan Kohberger matches DNA found at Idaho crime scene, court documents say
Niall Horan Teasing Details About One Direction’s Group Chat Is Simply Perfect
$73.5M beach replenishment project starts in January at Jersey Shore
Abortion bans drive off doctors and close clinics, putting other health care at risk
Ulta 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get a Salon-Level Blowout and Save 50% On the Bondi Boost Blowout Brush
New York Rejects a Natural Gas Pipeline, and Federal Regulators Say That’s OK