Most of the 18 defendants in the 2020 election case have already pleaded not guilty, including Trump’s former lawyer Rudy Giuliani, former Republican Party Chairman Kelli Ward and pro-Trump voters who participated to a strategy that prosecutors say was intended to disenfranchise Biden. legitimate electoral victory. Thursday, the senator said. Jake Hoffman (right) also pleaded not guilty. He, too, appeared via video with an illustration of Ronald Reagan wearing a cowboy hat displayed behind him. Later that day, Hoffman and another co-defendant, the senator said. Anthony Kern (right) was in the crowd when Trump made his first appearance in the battleground state since his criminal conviction in New York. To applause, the former president called his trial “rigged” and said “there was no crime.”
Trump was not charged in Arizona but was described in the indictment as an unindicted co-conspirator.
After Trump’s defeat in 2020, his allies worked with lawyers, campaign aides and Republican activists in seven states to employ a strategy to try to award states’ electoral votes to Trump instead of Biden, according to state and federal prosecutors and previously released documents. Most of the Arizona defendants or their lawyers have long maintained they did nothing wrong, but state prosecutors say they illegally tried to facilitate obstruction of victory certification of Biden to Congress in January. December 6, 2021. Lawyers and several defendants have called the indictment politically motivated.
Meadows appeared via streaming video in the basement courtroom, wearing a dark suit and royal blue tie. His lawyer told the commissioner that Meadows had already met their booking requirements, which include photo ID and fingerprints. It is clear whether the sheriff’s office received the material; An office spokesperson said Friday that “there is no update” on the availability of Meadows’ mugshot.
As Trump’s last White House chief of staff, Meadows was among those close to the president who were reportedly evaluating a plan for how legislation could overturn the will of voters by appointing alternative slates of Trump electors. Rep. Andy Biggs (Ariz.) was among the Republican members of Congress who communicated with Meadows about a version of such a strategy, according to text messages obtained by a House committee that investigated the origins of the report. January. September 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.
Meadows was charged in Georgia last year with criminal conspiracy to try to overturn Trump’s 2020 defeat. this State and solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer for his involvement in Trump’s January 2021 phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) during which Trump attempted to pressure the official to overturn Biden’s victory. The latter charge was dismissed this year, with the judge in the case saying the indictment lacked “sufficient detail.”
Meanwhile, Meadows downplayed his role in the election plan, demonstrating in Federal Court that he played no role in the effort. Prosecutors, however, presented evidence that showed Meadows in December 2020 sending emails about the voter scheme with a longtime aide to the Trump campaign.
After technical difficulties, it was Roman who took his turn, appearing in front of a white wall and dressed in a suit and tie. Afterward, his attorney in Arizona, Kurt Altman, said the charges against Roman were “excessive” and “unjustified.”
“We don’t understand why the charges were filed in the first place,” Altman said.
After Trump’s defeat, records show Roman helped coordinate the alternative elector plan with Trump’s lawyers. He played a key role in helping organize the strategy and communicated about the Arizona plan with top Republicans in the state, including the state party chairman and others, documents show.
He was indicted on seven counts in the Atlanta area last year, all related to his alleged involvement with that state’s alternate voters. On Tuesday, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul (D) charged Roman and two others with one count each of conspiracy to commit. false, according to criminal complaints. The fees are tied to the voter’s plan.
“It seems like there’s a concerted effort to get people to give up,” Altman said outside the Phoenix courthouse. “Mr. Roman has no intention of giving up.
Three other defendants in the case are expected to plead not guilty on June 18. Among them, Boris Epshteyn, who remains close to the former president and one of the main advisers of his 2024 campaign.
Holly Bailey in Atlanta contributed to this report.