Former Trump Legal Advisor Kenneth Chesebro Pleads Guilty In Georgia Case
Former Trump Campaign legal advisor Kenneth Chesebro, a lawyer who authored memos detailing how Republicans could send false slates of presidential electors to Congress, has pleaded guilty in the Georgia election interference case that charged him and 18 others.
The plea deal is another major victory for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who charged Trump and 18 others in the effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Thursday, former Trump campaign lawyer Sidney Powell also pleaded guilty.
A source familiar with the discussions said the likelihood of Chesebro taking a deal increased after his co-defendant Sidney Powell made a surprise turn and pleaded guilty herself on Thursday, leaving Chesebro as the sole defendant whose trial was scheduled to begin Friday.
Chesebro’s plea deal is the first admission by any of the attorneys involved in the false-elector effort that the plan veered into criminality. Prosecutors say that effort was part of a “multistate conspiracy” to subvert the 2020 election by violating federal election laws and stoking improper challenges to Joe Biden’s victory.
Under the deal, Chesebro, 62, will avoid jail time and instead serve a sentence of five years probation, pay $5,000 in restitution and perform 100 hours of community service. He will also be required to testify against co-defendants at any future trial, and he has written a letter of apology to the people of Georgia, Judge Scott McAfee said at a brief hearing just after noon Friday in Fulton County Superior Court.
