In a recent court filing on Wednesday, former President Donald Trump has petitioned the judge overseeing his Georgia election interference case to dismiss two additional counts against him.
Trump’s legal team is urging the judge to dismiss counts 15 and 27 from the indictment, which alleges a conspiracy to commit the filing of false documents and the filing of false documents, respectively.
The first count pertains to the “alternate elector plot,” accusing Trump and co-defendants of sending false documents related to this scheme to the chief judge of the U.S. district court in Georgia, constituting what is termed as a “substantial step.”
The second count alleges Trump and attorney John Eastman submitted a document containing “materially false statements” in a federal lawsuit.
According to Trump’s attorneys, these charges should be dropped as the state lacks jurisdiction to prosecute conduct associated with federal matters. They argue that the statute cited in the indictment overreaches and that the state does not possess the authority to enforce federal criminal law.
The filing follows the judge’s previous dismissal of six counts from the indictment, three of which involved Trump. Originally facing 13 counts, Trump now confronts 10 charges in the case.
Last August, Trump, and 18 others entered not guilty pleas to all charges in a wide-ranging racketeering indictment, accusing them of attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. Some defendants, including Kenneth Chesebro, Sidney Powell, Jenna Ellis, and Scott Hall, have since reached plea deals, agreeing to testify against others.
Trump has repeatedly criticized the district attorney’s investigation, alleging it to be politically motivated.
