The election meddling case against President Donald Trump in Georgia has been taken up yet again. Once upon a time, there was a rabidly anti-Trump prosecutor in the Peach State who built her career on toppling Trump. But her own career and reputation couldn’t stand the scrutiny that comes with such a high-profile case, and she was disqualified from the prosecution. The end – or so we thought. Now, however, the head of the Georgia Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council is leading the charge. And the saga continues.
Something Rotten in Georgia
Peter Skandalakis, the council’s director, told reporters Friday, November 14, that he would take on the case himself. Why? Nobody else wanted it. “The filing of this appointment reflects my inability to secure another conflict prosecutor to assume responsibility for this case,” he explained. “Several prosecutors were contacted and, while all were respectful and professional, each declined the appointment.”
Who can blame them? Fani Willis first charged Trump and 18 co-defendants in August of 2023 with racketeering and other charges related to interfering with the 2020 election. It was a weak case to begin with, and Liberty Nation News catalogued each of its – and its prosecutor’s – many failures along the way. The case itself fell apart as it shed both defendants and charges, but what did the most damage to the case was Willis herself.
By January of 2024, it was revealed that Fani Willis had been romantically involved with the special prosecutor she appointed to the Trump case, Nathan Wade. She stood accused of corruption, and after a long year of scandal and setbacks in the case, she was disqualified by a Georgia appeals court on December 19 of that year. As LNN Legal Affairs Editor Scott D. Cosenza put it in a February 2024 article on the scandal, “Trump’s luck in attracting the most corrupt and inept attackers continues apace.”
But, while Ms. Willis’ fall from grace left the case in limbo, the court did not actually dismiss it, though Friday was the deadline. Had a prosecutor not been assigned, the case would have expired.
A Rise From the Ashes – Sort Of
Cue Peter Skandalakis. “The public has a legitimate interest in the outcome of this case,” he argued. “Accordingly, it is important that someone make an informed and transparent determination about how best to proceed.”
And so the case is back, well, sort of. Skandalakis also stated that he only received the full documents on the case last week, and that he’s reviewing them and will decide how – and if – to proceed. President Trump’s attorney, Steve Sadow, told reporters that he expects “a fair and impartial review will lead to a dismissal of the case.”
Judge Scott McAfee, the same judge who disqualified Fani Willis and had previously dismissed six of the many charges leveled against the president, announced Friday that he was dropping three more. Counts 14, 15, and 27, conspiracy and criminal attempt to file false documents and filing false documents, have been cut from the case. Still, 32 charges remain against 15 defendants.
President Trump is technically safe from state prosecution while in office, but the 14 others aren’t so lucky. The next step in the case is a status hearing in December. Only then will we likely know the new prosecutor’s final decision.
