GA - Former President Donald Trump indicted, 10 counts in 2020 election interference, violation of RICO Act, 14 Aug 2023

[Inthedetails]

Continuing the read-along of the Georgia Indictment

Count 1: Violation of Georgia RICO Act
All 19 defendants are charged with this count. There are 161 acts under the count and I'm going through them by taking notes.

Any bolding is my me. Any mistakes are also by me. The original document is linked below.

One more thing - the acts are "furtherance of the conspiracy" but I don't type that for each act over and over, assuming people here understand that.

88. Dec 15, 2020: Stephen Lee (pastor) attempted to commit the felony Influencing Witnesses in Fulton County, Georgia by traveling to the home of Ruby Freeman, election worker, and knocking on her door with intent to influence her testimony in an official proceeding in Fulton County concerning events at State Farm Arena in the presidential election. This was an act of racketeering. (Reminder: this is the second time the pastor went to Ruby's home.)

89. Between Dec 15, 2020 - Jan 4, 2021: Stephen Lee (pastor) solicited Harrison Floyd (leader of Black Voices for Trump) to assist his efforts to speak to Ruby Freeman, election worker. Stephen Lee stated to Harrison Floyd that Rudy Freeman was afraid to talk to Stephen Lee because he was a white man.

90. Dec 18, 2020: Trump met with Rudy, Sidney Powell (Trump campaign lawyer), unindicated co-conspirator #20 and others at the White House. They discussed strategies to influence the outcome of the presidential election, including seizing voting equipment and appointing Sidney Powell as special council with broad authority to investigate allegations of voter fraud in Georgia and elsewhere.

91. Dec 21, 2020: Sidney Powell (Trump campaign lawyer) emailed Chief Operations Officer of SullivanStrickler LLC and instructed him that she and unindicted co-conspirators #6, #21, #22 were immediately to "receive a copy of all data" obtained by SullivanStrickler from Dominion Voting Systems equipment in Michigan.

92. Dec 22, 2020: Mark Meadows (White House Chief of Staff) traveled to Cobb County Civic Center, Georgia, and attempted to observe the signature match audit being performed by Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Office of the Georgia Secretary of State despite the fact the audit was not open to the public. At the center, Mark Meadows spoke to Georgia Deputy Secretary of State, Office of the Georgia Secretary of State Chief Investigator, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge, and others, who prevented Mark Meadows from entering where the audit was being conducted.

93. Dec 23, 2020: Trump called Office of the Georgia Secretary of State Chief Investigator and falsely stated he won the election "by hundreds of thousands of votes" and "when the right answer comes out you'll be praised."

94. Dec 23, 2020: John Eastman (Trump lawyer) emailed Kenneth Chesebro (Trump lawyer) and unindicted co-conspirator #3 with subject "FW: Draft 2, with edits." Eastman attached a memo "PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL -- Dec 23 memo on Jan 6 scenario.doc.x" and stated "As for the hearings, I think both are unnecessary. The fact that we have multiple slates of electors demonstrates the uncertainty of either. That should be enough. And I agree with Ken that Judiciary Committee hearings on the constitutionality of the Electoral Count Act could invite counter views that we do not believe should constrain Pence (or Grassley) in the exercise of power they have under the 12th Amendment. Better for them just to act boldly and be challenged, since the challenge would likely lead to the Court denying review on nonjusticiable political question grounds."
(Notes:
* Regarding Grassley, he famously said before J6, "if the Vice President isn’t there and we don’t expect him to be there, I will be presiding over the Senate." Link below. Here we have Eastman suggesting on Dec 23 that Grassley might preside on J6.
* Regarding what "nonjusticiable political question" means, it is:
"Federal courts will refuse to hear a case if they find that it presents a political question. This doctrine refers to the idea that an issue is so politically charged that federal courts, which are typically viewed as the apolitical branch of government, should not hear the issue." Source for definition below.

I'll pause here so that Christmas Day can have it's own post.

Source for notes: pages 43-44 of Georgia Indictment

23SC188947 - CRIMINAL INDICTMENT

www.documentcloud.org

Article about Grassley Grassley suggests he may preside over Senate debate on Electoral College votes - Iowa Capital Dispatch

Legal definition source

political question doctrine

www.law.cornell.edu

I'm digging looking at dates as I go through the timeline in the Georgia indictment so might as well take you along with me. The above notes are from Dec 15-23 so here's some of what was happening then, not in the GA indictment:

Mitch McConnell congratulates Biden on the win and urges Senate Republicans not to challenge electoral votes.

On a stump for Dem candidates in Georgia Senate run-off, Biden mocks Republican failed efforts to overturn his win in Georgia.

Conservative media divided on whether to refer Biden as president-elect or not.

Trump tweets, "Mitch, 75,000,000 VOTES, a record for a sitting President (by a lot). Too soon to give up. Republican Party must finally learn to fight. People are angry!"

Senate Homeland Security Committee attempts to hold a hearing on allegations of voting irregularities but it unfolds into divisive and bitter exchanges along party lines.

With almost all of Trump lawsuit's dismissed, Dominion formally sends letter to Sidney Powell demanding she publicly retract her unproven accusations against their machines.

Trump discusses with advisors the idea of appointing Sidney Powell as special counsel to investigate allegations of voter fraud. He reportedly discusses imposing martial law but later denies it in a tweet.

There's more, if interested. Information is from:

Timeline of the 2020 United States presidential election (November 2020–January 2021) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Vern]

Despite the current push to return to paper ballots in Georgia and an apparent on-going lawsuit, it should be pointed out that:

The Original results and THREE recounts, one of which was by hand, all resulted in Trump still losing. More than one lawsuit - all tossed - found zero evidence of voter fraud.

We can recount until we are blue in the face and continue to file lawsuits forever, but it doesn't change the fact that the Georgia Election results have already been verified via numerous, including a hand, recounts and tossed lawsuits that determined there was no voter fraud. IMO, the ongoing lawsuit will show the same because the votes and the 'evidence' have not changed.

At some point they will become "frivolous lawsuits".

I hope that they do go back to paper ballots just to make people feel more comfortable, but people will still vote how they vote ... I wonder if they lose in 2024 as well, what the heck will they then find to blame it on?

IMO, people who don't want to believe 45 could possibly have lost, will never believe he lost; that's what rabid partisanship has come to (and that's why those elected into Washington can't get diddly-squat done either).

Also IMO, nor will they be watching 'witch hunt' or 'fake trials' despite the fact that Georgia televises precisely because the Big Lie has gone on too long and those Republicans in Congress and at State level who should have spoken up and out from the get-go utterly failed in doing so. The too have subverted their own oathes to uphold the Constitution of the United States and I would like to see nothing better than each and every one of these folks being voted out the door.

 

[MyBelle]

Despite the current push to return to paper ballots in Georgia and an apparent on-going lawsuit, it should be pointed out that:

The Original results and THREE recounts, one of which was by hand, all resulted in Trump still losing. More than one lawsuit - all tossed - found zero evidence of voter fraud.

We can recount until we are blue in the face and continue to file lawsuits forever, but it doesn't change the fact that the Georgia Election results have already been verified via numerous, including a hand, recounts and tossed lawsuits that determined there was no voter fraud. IMO, the ongoing lawsuit will show the same because the votes and the 'evidence' have not changed.

At some point they will become "frivolous lawsuits".

I hope that they do go back to paper ballots just to make people feel more comfortable, but people will still vote how they vote ... I wonder if they lose in 2024 as well, what the heck will they then find to blame it on?

IMO, people who don't want to believe 45 could possibly have lost, will never believe he lost; that's what rabid partisanship has come to (and that's why those elected into Washington can't get diddly-squat done either).

Also IMO, nor will they be watching 'witch hunt' or 'fake trials' despite the fact that Georgia televises precisely because the Big Lie has gone on too long and those Republicans in Congress and at State level who should have spoken up and out from the get-go utterly failed in doing so. The too have subverted their own oathes to uphold the Constitution of the United States and I would like to see nothing better than each and every one of these folks being voted out the door.

Recounts aren't the issue in Georgia. The electronic voting systems are the issue, as clearly pointed out in the Curling v Raffensperger lawsuit. I do not believe Amy Totenberg, United States District Judge, considers this a "frivolous" lawsuit.
JMO

Curling v. Raffensperger, 403 F. Supp. 3d 1311 | Casetext Search + Citator

Read Curling v. Raffensperger, 403 F. Supp. 3d 1311, see flags on bad law, and search Casetext’s comprehensive legal database

casetext.com

This case challenges the constitutionality of the State of Georgia's use of Direct Recording Electronic voting machines ("DREs") and associated software systems in today's era of heightened cybersecurity threats.

Plaintiffs allege that Georgia's voting machines are susceptible to the introduction of undetectable malware designed to alter votes. At the September 2018 hearing, Dr. Alex Halderman, a Professor of Computer Science and Engineering and Director of the Center for Computer Security and Society at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, discussed and demonstrated how a malware virus can be introduced into the DRE machine by insertion of an infected memory card (or by other sources) and alter the votes cast without detection.

Dr. Halderman gave a live demonstration in Court with a Diebold DRE using the same type of equipment and software as that used in Georgia. The demonstration showed that although the same total number of votes were cast, the contaminated memory card's malware changed the actual votes cast between candidates. There was no means of detection of this as the "malware modified all of the vote records, audit logs, and protective counters stored by the machine, so that even careful forensic examination of the files would find nothing amiss." (Halderman Affidavit, Doc. 260-2 ¶ 19.)

The DRE machine's paper tape simply confirmed the same total number of votes, including the results of the manipulated or altered votes. Viruses and malware have also been developed by cyber specialists that can spread the "vote stealing malware automatically and silently from machine to machine during normal pre- and post-election activities," as the cards are used to interface with the County and State GEMS servers. (Id. ¶ 20.)

 

[Inthedetails]

Recounts aren't the issue in Georgia. The electronic voting systems are the issue, as clearly pointed out in the Curling v Raffensperger lawsuit. I do not believe Amy Totenberg, United States District Judge, considers this a "frivolous" lawsuit.
JMO

Curling v. Raffensperger, 403 F. Supp. 3d 1311 | Casetext Search + Citator

Read Curling v. Raffensperger, 403 F. Supp. 3d 1311, see flags on bad law, and search Casetext’s comprehensive legal database

casetext.com

This case challenges the constitutionality of the State of Georgia's use of Direct Recording Electronic voting machines ("DREs") and associated software systems in today's era of heightened cybersecurity threats.

Plaintiffs allege that Georgia's voting machines are susceptible to the introduction of undetectable malware designed to alter votes. At the September 2018 hearing, Dr. Alex Halderman, a Professor of Computer Science and Engineering and Director of the Center for Computer Security and Society at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, discussed and demonstrated how a malware virus can be introduced into the DRE machine by insertion of an infected memory card (or by other sources) and alter the votes cast without detection.

Dr. Halderman gave a live demonstration in Court with a Diebold DRE using the same type of equipment and software as that used in Georgia. The demonstration showed that although the same total number of votes were cast, the contaminated memory card's malware changed the actual votes cast between candidates. There was no means of detection of this as the "malware modified all of the vote records, audit logs, and protective counters stored by the machine, so that even careful forensic examination of the files would find nothing amiss." (Halderman Affidavit, Doc. 260-2 ¶ 19.)

The DRE machine's paper tape simply confirmed the same total number of votes, including the results of the manipulated or altered votes. Viruses and malware have also been developed by cyber specialists that can spread the "vote stealing malware automatically and silently from machine to machine during normal pre- and post-election activities," as the cards are used to interface with the County and State GEMS servers. (Id. ¶ 20.)

There is a difference between wanting to to upgrade voting machines and evidence of past fraud.

There is no evidence of fraud in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

No matter how nervous some people might be about voting machines and wanting to secure them further, there is no evidence of fraud in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

These are two different issues.

jmo

 

[Vern]

...
There is no evidence of fraud in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
...

RSBM:

I agree 1000%!!

It bears repeating!

 

[MyBelle]

Snipped.

I don't want to float any ideas because I know how some people believe anything that isn't true, but China is the biggest supplier of both paper and pens in the world. Watch out - the pe

Of course, I am kidding.

Paper ballots might take awhile to count, and if the results are not instantly tallied, conspiracies will start about that.

If we let them. We don't have to let conspiracies circulate. There is an easy way to stop them. Don't fall for them, don't repeat them.

jmo

There is a difference between wanting to to upgrade voting machines and evidence of past fraud.

There is no evidence of fraud in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

No matter how nervous some people might be about voting machines and wanting to secure them further, there is no evidence of fraud in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

These are two different issues.

jmo

BBM. The issue in Georgia is election SECURITY. The reason there is no evidence of past fraud is because the Dominion machines, according to the cyber security expert, are not secure and can be manipulated.

From my link are the Judge's words:
In their complaints, their motions for preliminary injunction, and their presentations during the September 12th hearing, Plaintiffs paint an unsettling picture of the vulnerabilities of Georgia's voting system along with the recent, increased, and real threats of malicious intrusion and manipulation of the system and voter data by nation states and cyber savvy individuals.

JMO

 

[Inthedetails]

Moving through the Georgia Indictment, one bit at a time.

Count 1: Violation of Georgia RICO Act
All 19 defendants are charged with this count. There are 161 acts under the count. One of the acts is from Christmas Day and I thought it best to give it it's own post.

Any bolding and festive coloring is by me. Any mistakes are also by me.

95. Dec 25, 2020: Trump called Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives Rusty Bowers to solicit Bowers to unlawfully appoint presidential electors from Arizona. During the call, Bowers stated to Trump, "I voted for you. I worked for you. I campaigned for you. I just won't do anything illegal for you."

Merry Christmas, USA.

I wish the bar were a bit higher for something to celebrate, but I'll take a person in power declining to commit a crime.

Source: Georgia Indictment, page 45.

23SC188947 - CRIMINAL INDICTMENT

www.documentcloud.org

 

[Leilei]

A review of 10 key states (Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin) finds that Dominion systems were used in 351 of 731 counties. Trump won 283 of those counties, 81 percent of the total. He won 79 percent of the counties that didn’t use Dominion systems.


In counties that used Dominion systems, Biden got 888,259 votes to Trump’s 851,069. In counties that didn’t use Dominion systems, Biden got 1.54 million votes to Trump’s 1.52 million. In other words, if you eliminated every county that used Dominion systems, Biden still got more votes. Biden won Dominion-using counties by about two points overall compared with his 0.5-point margin in non-Dominion counties.

(snipped from this article)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/12/01/swing-state-counties-that-used-dominion-voting-machines-mostly-voted-trump/

IMO

 

[Vern]

On Dominion:

Joint Statement from Elections Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council & the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Executive Committees | CISA

The members of Election Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council (GCC) Executive Committee – Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Assistant Director Bob Kolasky, U.S. Election Assistance Commission Chair Benjamin Hovland, National Association of Secretari

www.cisa.gov

https://www.mitre.org/sites/default/files/2021-08/pr-21-0431-data-analytics-to-enhance-election-transparency.pdf

And their successful Defamation lawsuit which resulted in the 787 million judgement against FOX for spreading lies and untruthes about their system:

Fox, Dominion Voting Systems reach $787 million settlement over false election claims

Fox and Dominion Voting Systems reached a $787 million settlement Tuesday in the voting machine company’s defamation lawsuit, averting a trial in a case that exposed how the top-rated network chased viewers by promoting lies about the 2020 presidential election.

www.pbs.org

Words from the Judge:

The resolution in Delaware Superior Court follows a recent ruling by Judge Eric Davis in which he allowed the case to go to trial while emphasizing it was “CRYSTAL clear” that none of the allegations about Dominion aired on Fox by Trump allies were true.

 

[Leilei]

Moving through the Georgia Indictment, one bit at a time.

Count 1: Violation of Georgia RICO Act
All 19 defendants are charge with this count. There are 161 acts under the count. One of the acts is from Christmas Day and I thought it best to give it it's own post.

Any bolding and festive coloring is by me. Any mistakes are also by me.

95. Dec 25, 2020: Trump called Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives Rusty Bowers to solicit Bowers to unlawfully appoint presidential electors from Arizona. During the call, Bowers stated to Trump, "I voted for you. I worked for you. I campaigned for you. I just won't do anything illegal for you."

Merry Christmas, USA.

I wish the bar were a bit higher for something to celebrate, but I'll take a person in power declining to commit a crime.

Source: Georgia Indictment, page 45.

23SC188947 - CRIMINAL INDICTMENT

www.documentcloud.org

Good for Bowers and all of the others who denied those requests. Might not agree with them politically, but I have to respect them for standing up to Trump and company and doing the right thing. The LEGAL thing.

 

[waldojabba]

BBM. The issue in Georgia is election SECURITY. The reason there is no evidence of past fraud is because the Dominion machines, according to the cyber security expert, are not secure and can be manipulated.

From my link are the Judge's words:
In their complaints, their motions for preliminary injunction, and their presentations during the September 12th hearing, Plaintiffs paint an unsettling picture of the vulnerabilities of Georgia's voting system along with the recent, increased, and real threats of malicious intrusion and manipulation of the system and voter data by nation states and cyber savvy individuals.

JMO

I don’t follow Georgia politics but didn’t Dominion win/ settle their lawsuit against FOX for alleging and reporting the same unfounded allegations iirc? If the machines are prone to manipulation, were the machines indeed manipulated aka a fraud committed ? Or is this a heads up that the this particular expert believes the dominion system has a “bug”in it? Or if he thinks the machines were manipulated wouldn’t all the states elections have been impacted. Just curious
Thanks @MyBelle
all Imo

 

[MyBelle]

On Dominion:

Joint Statement from Elections Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council & the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Executive Committees | CISA

The members of Election Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council (GCC) Executive Committee – Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Assistant Director Bob Kolasky, U.S. Election Assistance Commission Chair Benjamin Hovland, National Association of Secretari

www.cisa.gov

https://www.mitre.org/sites/default/files/2021-08/pr-21-0431-data-analytics-to-enhance-election-transparency.pdf

And their successful Defamation lawsuit which resulted in the 787 million judgement against FOX for spreading lies and untruthes about their system:

Fox, Dominion Voting Systems reach $787 million settlement over false election claims

Fox and Dominion Voting Systems reached a $787 million settlement Tuesday in the voting machine company’s defamation lawsuit, averting a trial in a case that exposed how the top-rated network chased viewers by promoting lies about the 2020 presidential election.

www.pbs.org

Words from the Judge:

The Curling v Raffensperger federal lawsuit in Georgia really has nothing to do with the Fox lawsuit.

JMO

 

[MyBelle]

I don’t follow Georgia politics but didn’t Dominion win/ settle their lawsuit against FOX for alleging and reporting the same unfounded allegations iirc? If the machines are prone to manipulation, were the machines indeed manipulated aka a fraud committed ? Or is this a heads up that the this particular expert believes the dominion system has a “bug”in it? Or if he thinks the machines were manipulated wouldn’t all the states elections have been impacted. Just curious
Thanks @MyBelle
all Imo

Fox settled. A settlement isn't a win. It also took place before the cyber security expert's 2018 evaluation was unsealed earlier this summer.

Halderman's evaluation was specific to the Georgia federal lawsuit but if the systems are all the same, I would hope that all states that use Dominion should be very concerned.
JMO

Expert report fuels election doubts as Georgia waits to update voting software

A newly unsealed expert report arguing that Georgia’s Dominion voting machines are vulnerable to hacking is fueling election doubts in Georgia.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Leilei]

Surrendering Thursday or Friday - cutting it close.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/18/politics/when-trump-surrender-fulton-county-jail/index.html

 

[JerseyGirl]

Halderman's evaluation was specific to the Georgia federal lawsuit but if the systems are all the same, I would hope that all states that use Dominion should be very concerned.
JMO

Expert report fuels election doubts as Georgia waits to update voting software

A newly unsealed expert report arguing that Georgia’s Dominion voting machines are vulnerable to hacking is fueling election doubts in Georgia.

www.nbcnews.com

From your link:

A second report, also unsealed by the judge, was authored by national security nonprofit MITRE. That group argued the hacks identified by Halderman were “operationally infeasible” based on normal voting practices, scale considerations, and adherence to strict security measures.

It’s a view shared by Georgia officials, who included the MITRE report in a press release that criticized Halderman's report.

Mike Hassinger, a spokesman for Raffensperger's office, said that responding to this report all day felt like he was "stuck in a Dumb and Dumber paradox," referencing a character's response to a one in a million likelihood: "So, you're telling me there's a chance?"

And already, it's being declared a bombshell by those who sought to overturn the results of the 2020 election, despite no evidence of any actual hacking in that contest.

Steve Bannon, a former Trump strategist, spoke about Halderman's report with several guests on his "War Room" show, including Garland Favorito, an activist who runs an election integrity group in Georgia.

 

[vls12345]

For those interested, there is a Dominion-specific thread:

DE - Dominion Voting Systems vs. Fox News, $1.6B Defamation Trial for 2020 election lies, 17 Apr 2023 *Settled $787m*

Court rejects Fox News bid to toss Dominion lawsuit. "[T]he evidence does not support that [Fox News] conducted good-faith, disinterested reporting." https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23737039/dominionrlg033123.pdf "The evidence developed in this civil proceeding demonstrates that is...

www.websleuths.com

 

[vls12345]

Surrendering Thursday or Friday - cutting it close.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/18/politics/when-trump-surrender-fulton-county-jail/index.html

From that article:

The US Secret Service has been onsite at the Fulton County Jail for the last several weeks working with the Fulton County Sheriff Department and the city of Atlanta in planning for the former president’s surrender, a USSS spokesperson told CNN.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Trump co-defendant Chesebro appears to have been at Capitol on Jan. 6

Chesebro was indicted with Trump and 17 others in Fulton County, Georgia, this week on charges related to the effort to keep Trump in power despite losing the 2020 election.

www.nbcnews.com

Kenneth Chesebro, the lawyer associated with Donald Trump’s campaign who thought up the legal theory behind the so-called fake electors scheme, appears to have been on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to a review of public source video and his own former mentor.

Chesebro was indicted along with Trump and 17 other defendants in Fulton County, Georgia, this week on charges related to the effort to keep Trump in power despite losing the 2020 presidential election.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/18/politics/kfile-kenneth-chesebro-followed-alex-jones-capitol-riot-jan-6/index.html

It was unclear why Chesebro was following Alex Jones on January 6.

 

[waldojabba]

Fox settled. A settlement isn't a win. It also took place before the cyber security expert's 2018 evaluation was unsealed earlier this summer.

Halderman's evaluation was specific to the Georgia federal lawsuit but if the systems are all the same, I would hope that all states that use Dominion should be very concerned.
JMO

Expert report fuels election doubts as Georgia waits to update voting software

A newly unsealed expert report arguing that Georgia’s Dominion voting machines are vulnerable to hacking is fueling election doubts in Georgia.

www.nbcnews.com

Appreciate the response @MyBelle!

 

[vls12345]

Surrendering Thursday or Friday - cutting it close.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/18/politics/when-trump-surrender-fulton-county-jail/index.html

Indictments came Monday night. The former guy and his co-conspirators have until next Friday at noon to turn themselves in. I just checked the Fulton County inmate search and didn't see that any of them have been booked yet.

MOO.