John Eastman, former dean of Chapman University Law School, has been implicated in a grand jury indictment in Fulton County, Georgia. The indictment accuses former President Donald Trump and others of engaging in racketeering to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Specifically, Eastman is accused of participating in a scheme to have an alternate slate of electors from Georgia, favorable to Trump, represent the state in the Electoral College after President Joe Biden won. This indictment, consisting of 98 pages, alleges that Eastman sent an email to co-defendant Robert David Cheeley and Georgia state Sen. Brandon Beach, stating that the Trump presidential elector nominees in Georgia needed to convene, sign certificates of vote, and send them to the President of the Senate and other officials. According to the indictment, this email served as an overt act to further the conspiracy. Cheeley, in another email, claimed that Eastman stressed the importance of the electors voting in accordance with the Electoral College. The indictment further alleges that Eastman urged for a meeting of electors loyal to Trump to take place by December 14, 2020, and for them to sign six sets of certificates of vote and deliver them to the president of the state Senate. Additionally, the indictment claims there were attempts to set up a call with the speaker of the state House of Representatives in Georgia and the president pro tem of the state senate.
The indictment also implicates Eastman in sending a memo to Rudy Giuliani, another former Trump attorney, regarding slating alternate electors in Wisconsin, which Biden also won. Trump and Eastman are accused of contacting Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel to obtain help in gathering electors loyal to Trump in swing states that the former president lost in 2020. Furthermore, on December 23, 2020, Eastman allegedly sent an email to Kenneth John Chesebro and another individual, sharing a draft memo about January 6, when Congress was scheduled to certify the electoral college results. The memo, as quoted in the indictment, argues against holding hearings and suggests that the uncertainty surrounding the multiple slates of electors should be enough to challenge the results. The indictment goes on to accuse Eastman, Trump, and others of filing false documents in violation of Georgia law in a federal lawsuit seeking to overturn the election results through fraud claims. The false statements outlined in the indictment include allegations of felons voting illegally, underage individuals voting, unregistered voters casting ballots, voters using P.O. boxes as addresses, and deceased individuals voting.
The indictment alleges that Eastman later admitted in an email to attorneys associated with the Trump campaign that some of the allegations in the verified complaint were inaccurate. During his California state Bar disbarment hearings, Eastman attributed these discrepancies to a clerical error from an expert hired for the lawsuit. The indictment also accuses Eastman of contacting Rusty Bowers, the speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives, in an attempt to unlawfully appoint presidential electors from Arizona. However, Bowers declined to comply with Eastman’s request, stating that he would not risk violating his oath of office.
In addition, the indictment refers to a meeting held on January 4, 2021, involving Trump and Eastman, where they allegedly tried to persuade then-Vice President Mike Pence, as the head of the U.S. Senate, to reject the electoral college votes. According to the indictment, Eastman admitted during the meeting that both options of rejecting the electors or delaying the certification violated the Electoral County Act. Eastman also reportedly met with Marc Short, Pence’s chief of staff, and Greg Jacob, counsel for the former vice president, asking Pence to reject the slates of presidential electors from Georgia. Trump and Eastman allegedly called Pence later that day, urging him to reject the slates or return them to the states for reconsideration. The email from Eastman to Jacob is quoted in the indictment, suggesting that since the Electoral Count Act was not considered sacrosanct, Pence should consider a minor violation and adjourn for 10 days to allow for further investigations and a forensic audit of alleged illegal activity. The email ends with the hope that such a process would present the illegality to the millions of people who supported Trump.
Eastman has been charged with a number of offenses, including violation of the Georgia Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, conspiracy to commit impersonating a public officer, conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree, conspiracy to commit false statements and writings, conspiracy to commit filing false documents, and conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. Eastman’s attorney, Charles Burnham, has not yet responded to requests for comment.
The indictments have caused significant controversy, with Trump’s attorneys, Drew Findling, Jennifer Little, and Marissa Goldberg, issuing a statement claiming that the leak of the indictment and the rushed process raise concerns about the fairness and constitutionality of the entire proceedings. They argue that the witnesses relied upon by the prosecution have their own personal and political interests, some of whom have profited from book deals and employment opportunities related to their efforts against the accused. The attorneys look forward to conducting a detailed review of the indictment, maintaining that it is flawed and unconstitutional.
Denial of responsibility! VigourTimes is an automatic aggregator of Global media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.
