Georgia Judge Denies Trump Co-Defendant’s Attempt To Have His Case Tried Separately

A Georgia state judge denied an attempt by one of Trump’s co-defendant’s to have his case tried separately Wednesday, while remaining skeptical of trying all defendants at the same time.

Attorney Kenneth Chesebro filed a motion for a speedy trial, as did Sidney Powell, but later requested his case be tried separately from Powell’s. Fulton County Superior Court judge Scott McAfee denied the request and set the trial date for both to Oct. 23 during a hearing Wednesday.

“Based on what’s been presented today, I am not finding the severance from Mr. Chesebro, or Powell is necessary to achieve a fair determination of guilt or innocence for either defendant in this case,” Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee said, according to a recording of the hearing.

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During the hearing, prosecutors estimated the trial for all 19 defendants would take 4 months — excluding jury selection — and would include around 150 witnesses.

McAfee said he was “very skeptical” of prosecutors’ plans to try all defendants on the same day, according to the recording.

“It just seems a bit unrealistic to think that we can handle all 19 in 40-something days,” he said. “That’s my initial reaction.”

Several defendants, including Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, have filed motions to move their case to federal court, which could undermine the validity of jury proceedings in state court. McAfee noted it could “potentially even be a six-month turnaround” for the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to make a decision on an appeal.

“Where does that leave us in the middle of a jury trial?” he asked.