Attorney Kenneth Chesebro pleads guilty, won’t go to trial in Georgia election interference case
ByWSBTV.com News Staff
ByWSBTV.com News Staff
ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News has learned that former President Donald Trump’s attorney Kenneth Chesebro has taken a plea deal inthe Georgia election interference case.
According to the deal, Chesebro pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit filing false documents.
Chesebro agreed to five years of probation, pay $5,000 in restitution, community service hours and to write an apology letter to the citizens of Georgia. He will also have to truthfully testify and cannot have contact with witnesses or other co-defendants.
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Georgia Election Indictment Kenneth Chesebro accepts a plea deal in front of Fulton County Superior Judge Scott McAfee, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Chesebro, who was was charged alongside former President Donald Trump and 17 others with violating the state's anti-racketeering law in efforts to overturn Trump's loss in the 2020 election in Georgia, pleaded guilty to a felony just as jury selection was getting underway in his trial. Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Lawyer Kenneth Chesebro is sworn in during a plea deal hearing, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Chesebro, who was was charged alongside former President Donald Trump and 17 others with violating the state's anti-racketeering law in efforts to overturn Trump's loss in the 2020 election in Georgia, pleaded guilty to a felony just as jury selection was getting underway in his trial. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Attorney Scott Grubman, right, stands with his client, Kenneth Chesebro as Chesebro is sworn in during a plea deal hearing, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Chesebro, who was was charged alongside former President Donald Trump and 17 others with violating the state's anti-racketeering law in efforts to overturn Trump's loss in the 2020 election in Georgia, pleaded guilty to a felony just as jury selection was getting underway in his trial. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Fulton County District Attorney Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade, left, Executive District Attorney Daysha Young and Attorney Alex Bernice, listen as Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee addresses potential jurors during jury selection for lawyer Kenneth Chesebro's trial, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Jury selection began Friday for Chesebro, the first defendant to go to trial in the Georgia case that accuses former President Donald Trump and others of illegally scheming to overturn the 2020 election in the state. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee addresses potential jurors during jury selection for lawyer Kenneth Chesebro's trial, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Jury selection began Friday for Chesebro, the first defendant to go to trial in the Georgia case that accuses former President Donald Trump and others of illegally scheming to overturn the 2020 election in the state. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, center, receives information during jury selection for lawyer Kenneth Chesebro's trial, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Jury selection began Friday for Chesebro, the first defendant to go to trial in the Georgia case that accuses former President Donald Trump and others of illegally scheming to overturn the 2020 election in the state. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Attorneys Scott Grubman and Serreen Meki, both representing lawyer Kenneth Chesebro, confer in the courtroom of Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia. Jury selection is set to begin Friday for Chesebro, the first defendant to go to trial in the Georgia case that accuses former President Donald Trump and others of illegally scheming to overturn the 2020 election in the state. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee addresses potential jurors during jury selection for lawyer Kenneth Chesebro's trial, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Jury selection began Friday for Chesebro, the first defendant to go to trial in the Georgia case that accuses former President Donald Trump and others of illegally scheming to overturn the 2020 election in the state. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
Georgia Election Indictment Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee addresses potential jurors during jury selection for lawyer Kenneth Chesebro's trial, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Jury selection began Friday for Chesebro, the first defendant to go to trial in the Georgia case that accuses former President Donald Trump and others of illegally scheming to overturn the 2020 election in the state. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) (Alyssa Pointer/AP)
According to ABC News, Chesebro had previously rejected a plea deal from the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office.
That deal would have forced him to testify against his co-defendants, including former Pres. Trump, in exchange for three years probation and a $10,000 fine. The terms of the deal also included a written letter of apology.
Chesebro is now the third co-defendant in the case to take a plea deal in the case, following Scott Hall and Sidney Powell.
The Jan. 6 Committee said Chesebro was one of the architects of the fake elector scheme not only here in Georgia, but in at least six other swing states across the country.
As part of her agreement, Powell was sentenced to six years probation, a $6,000 fine and will have to pay $2,700 in restitution to the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office. She will also have to testify truthfully against the other co-defendants in the case and cannot have any contact with witnesses or other co-defendants.
Following Chesebro’s plea, that leaves 16 others still facing charges in the case, including former President Donald Trump.
Secretary of State’s Office says despite plea, Sidney Powell did immeasurable damage to elections “It’s impossible to calculate the damage she’s done.”
