Georgia indictments: 4 more defendants surrender at Fulton County Jail
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. - Four more defendants in Georgia's investigation into Donald Trump and his allies' alleged illegal plot to overturn the former president's 2020 election loss have surrendered at the Fulton County Jail.
Former Georgia GOP chairman and state legislator David Shafer and former Coffee County GOP chair Cathy Latham turned themselves in to authorities at the jail early Wednesday morning.
Both have since been released on bond.
According to the Fulton County Jail docket, Georgia-based lawyer Ray Smith and Trump campaign attorney Kenneth Chesebro were booked into the jail Wednesday morning.
Shafer, Latham, Smith, and Chesebro are now among the six defendants accused by District Attorney Fani Willis of scheming to subvert the will of Georgia voters who have turned themselves in. Tuesday, Conservative attorney John Eastman and Atlanta-area bail bondsman Scott Hall surrendered to authorities.
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First 2 defendants surrender in GA election indictment
Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows has filed a new motion. And FOX 5 is learning more about the bond conditions for the defendants. John Eastman and Scott Hall are now out on bail. They turned themselves over at the Fulton County Jail. Just minutes after being released, one of them did not head home quietly. It’s the first time we’re hearing from one of those charged on camera.
Who is David Shafer?
Shafer, a prominent figure in Georgia's political landscape, was indicted for his alleged involvement in organizing an unofficial slate of electors after the 2020 United States presidential election.
The metro Atlanta Republican narrowly lost in the 2018 primary lieutenant governor runoff election against Geoff Duncan. Additionally, he was accused of sexual harassment, but the complaint was dismissed. His political fortunes took a turn, however, when he was elected chairman of the Georgia Republican Party in May 2019, coinciding with a series of high-profile events and controversies.
Of note is Shafer's involvement in supporting Georgia's voting reform bill, SB 202, in 2021. While it gained the backing of Republicans, Democrats and voting rights advocates criticized the bill as overly restrictive. In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, Shafer's participation in attempts to challenge the election results garnered substantial attention. He joined forces with the Georgia Republican Party and the Donald Trump campaign in filing a lawsuit contesting the certification of Georgia's election results, based on unsupported claims of election fraud.
GAGOP Chairman David Shafer speaks to a crowd.
Shafer was one of 16 state Republicans who met at the state Capitol on Dec. 14, 2020, to sign a certificate declaring falsely that Trump had won and also declaring themselves the state’s "duly elected and qualified" electors. Testifying before the United States House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 attack, he admitted that the Trump campaign had directed the Georgia GOP to present a slate of false electors, drawing further controversy and public scrutiny.
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Shafer's defense maintains that he acted on advice from Donald Trump's legal counsel, further complicating the legal and ethical debates surrounding his actions.
Here is the list of Shafer's charges:
- 1 - Violation of the Georgia RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act
- 8 - Impersonating a public officer
- 10 - Forgery in the first degree
- 12 - False statements and writings
- 14 - Criminal attempt to commit filing false documents
- 16 - Forgery in the first degree
- 18 - False statements and writings
- 40 - False statements and writings
Cathy Latham
Who is Cathy Latham?
One of 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a certificate falsely stating that Trump had won the state and declaring themselves the state’s "duly elected and qualified" electors, Cathy Latham was also chair of the Coffee County Republican Party.
In January 2021, Latham was accused of allowing unauthorized forensics experts from SullivanStrickler to examine voting systems within Coffee County for an extended period. It's believed that those experts illegally downloaded data from the Dominion voting machines on the behalf of Trump as Latham and others watched. She even took a selfie with one of the experts.
Here's a list of Latham's charges:
- 1 - Violation of the Georgia RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act
- 8 - Impersonating a public officer
- 10 - Forgery in the first degree
- 12 - False statements and writings
- 14 - Criminal attempt to commit filing false documents
- 32 - Conspiracy to commit election fraud
- 33 - Conspiracy to commit election fraud
- 34 - Conspiracy to commit computer theft
- 35 - Conspiracy to commit computer trespass
- 36 - Conspiracy to commit computer invasion of privacy
- 37 - Conspiracy to defraud the state
RAY SMITH
Who is Ray Smith?
Atlanta-based Ray Stallings Smith III is a business, real estate, election and probate litigation attorney with a national practice, according to his bio. He is a partner at the firm of Smith & Liss, LLC.
Smith was hired by former President Donald Trump to be his local attorney of record.
Smith is accused of advising the alternate GOP electors who met at the state capital and cast votes for Trump and signed documents that falsely claimed Trump had won the election. Following the 2020 election, Smith reportedly sent a letter to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and submitted several affidavits supporting Trump as the winner.
Smith also appeared before a state Senate subcommittee investigating allegations of voter fraud shortly after the election. During his testimony, he reportedly claimed that more than 130,000 illegal votes had been cast during the 2020 election. He also testified that 2,506 felons voted along with 10,315 individuals who were deceased.
Charges for Smith include:
- 1 - Violation of the Georgia RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act
- 2 - Solicitation of Violation of Oath by public officer
- 4 - False statements and writings
- 6 - Solicitation of violation of oath by public officer
- 9 - Conspiracy to commit impersonating a public officer
- 11 - Conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree
- 13 - Conspiracy to commit false statements and writing
- 15 - Conspiracy to commit filing false documents
- 17 - Conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree
- 19 - Conspiracy to commit false statements and writings
Who is Kenneth Chesebro?
Prosecutors have said Kenneth Chesebro, an attorney, worked with Georgia Republicans in the weeks after the November 2020 election at the direction of Trump’s campaign. Chesebro worked on the coordination and execution of a plan to have 16 Georgia Republicans sign a certificate declaring falsely that Trump won and declaring themselves the state’s "duly elected and qualified" electors.
Authorities have given Trump and the 12 other defendants in the indictment until Friday to turn themselves in. Rudy Giuliani, the former personal attorney to former President Donald J. Trump, may turn himself in at the Fulton County Jail today, according to multiple news outlets. FOX 5 has not yet confirmed that with Giuliani or his lawyers.
Charges for Chesebro include:
- 1 - Violation of the Georgia RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act
- 9 - Conspiracy to commit impersonating a public officer
- 11 - Conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree
- 13 - Conspiracy to commit false statements and writing
- 15 - Conspiracy to commit filing false documents
- 17 - Conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree
- 19 - Conspiracy to commit false statements and writings
A judge has set Chesebro's bond at $100.000.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.