A grand jury in Fulton County, Georgia, had recommended criminal charges against Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) as well as former GOP Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, according to a report that was released Friday.
Portions of the report were released earlier this year (pdf), but a judge had delayed its release until last month’s indictment of former President Donald Trump and 18 others. The panel also recommended charges against retired Lt. Gen Michael Flynn, a former Trump national security advisor, and Boris Epshteyn, also a top adviser to the 45th president.
The special grand jury panel said it heard from some 75 witnesses before completing a report in December with recommendations for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis on charges related to efforts after the 2020 presidential election. Ms. Willis had said she needed the panel’s subpoena power to compel the testimony of witnesses who might otherwise not have been willing to appear.
However, Ms. Willis’ office ultimately indicted the 19 aforementioned people, which also included attorney Sidney Powell, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis, and more on charges that included violating Georgia’s anti-racketeering law. They have all pleaded not guilty.
Mr. Graham, Ms. Loeffler, Mr. Perdue, and others were not among those who were charged last month, and it’s not clear if they will be in the future. Both Ms. Loeffler and Mr. Perdue lost their elections in early 2021, with current Sens. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) prevailing.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ordered the partial release of the report recommending charges in February but declined to immediately release the panel’s recommendations on who should or should not be prosecuted. The judge said at the time that he wanted to protect people’s due process rights.
Judge McBurney said in a new order filed Aug. 28 that the due process concerns were moot since a regular grand jury has indicted President Trump and 18 other people under the state’s anti-racketeering law.
By Jack Phillips
