Donald Trump has been charged four times this year, but the most recent allegations – in Georgia — may pose a special risk to the former president.
The Georgia case is the only one that is expected to be televised, with the historic proceedings being webcast and broadcast into homes across the United States and around the world.
The millionaire real estate developer shone for 14 years on the reality television show “The Apprentice,” but when the case goes to trial, he will play a much different role – that of criminal defendant.
Fani Willis, the Georgia district attorney who charged Trump and 18 others with racketeering and other felonies in connection with their efforts to overturn the 2020 election, said on Monday that the trial should take place within the next six months.
Trump is also facing federal charges brought by special counsel Jack Smith for allegedly trying to defraud the United States through his efforts to reverse the results of the presidential election in which he lost to Democrat Joe Biden.
A judge has set an August 28 trial date in the nation’s capital, but television cameras are not permitted in federal courtrooms.
Smith has requested that the trial begin on January 2, 2024, nearly three years after Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol in a last-ditch attempt to prevent Congress from certifying Biden’s victory.
In a case due to go to trial in Florida in May 2024, the special counsel has also accused Trump, the current Republican presidential frontrunner, of mishandling top secret government secrets.
Trump also faces a state trial in New York in March 2024 for allegedly paying hush money to a porn star on election night, although the charges in Georgia are far less serious.
Trump, 77, is charged in Georgia of attempting to change the election results in the southern state, where he lost to Biden by less than 12,000 votes.
Trump was recorded ordering Georgia election officials to “find 11,780 votes” – the exact amount he would need to overturn Biden’s victory there.
Racketeering
Trump and the other 18 co-defendants in the Georgia case, including his former White House top of staff Mark Meadows and his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, are charged with racketeering, a crime not included in the previous criminal prosecutions.
A conviction for racketeering, which is primarily used to pursue organized crime, has a minimum jail sentence of five years.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to the New York and federal accusations, accusing his Democratic political opponents of pursuing them to undermine his presidential bid.
As for a pardon: the New York and Georgia indictments both involve state charges, not federal ones, and Trump would not be able to pardon himself if he does manage to recapture the White House next year.
A US president can only issue pardons for federal crimes, not state convictions.
In Georgia, pardons are granted by a five-member Board of Pardons and Paroles, not by the governor as in many other states.
An offender can only apply for a pardon, however, at least five years after completing their prison sentence and they must have “lived a law-abiding life” since their release.