Current:Home > reviewsSidney Powell pleads guilty in case over efforts to overturn Trump’s Georgia loss and gets probation -Quantum Capital Pro
Sidney Powell pleads guilty in case over efforts to overturn Trump’s Georgia loss and gets probation
View
Date:2025-04-16 08:26:36
ATLANTA (AP) — Lawyer Sidney Powell pleaded guilty to reduced charges Thursday over efforts to overturn Donald Trump’s loss in the 2020 election in Georgia, becoming the second defendant in the sprawling case to reach a deal with prosecutors.
Powell, who was charged alongside Trump and 17 others with violating the state’s anti-racketeering law, entered the plea just a day before jury selection was set to start in her trial. She pleaded guilty to six misdemeanors related to intentionally interfering with the performance of election duties.
As part of the deal, she will serve six years of probation, will be fined $6,000 and will have to write an apology letter to Georgia and its residents. She also agreed to testify truthfully against her co-defendants at future trials.
Related coverage
Trump and 18 allies charged in Georgia election meddling as former president faces 4th criminal case
How a law associated with mobsters is central to charges against Trump
Georgia judge rules that Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro can be tried together starting Oct. 23
Powell, 68, was initially charged with racketeering and six other counts as part of a wide-ranging scheme to keep the Republican president in power after he lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden. Prosecutors say she also participated in an unauthorized breach of elections equipment in a rural Georgia county elections office.
The acceptance of a plea deal is a remarkable about-face for a lawyer who, perhaps more than anyone else, strenuously pushed baseless conspiracy theories about a stolen election in the face of extensive evidence to the contrary. If prosecutors compel her to testify, she could provide insight on a news conference she participated in on behalf of Trump and his campaign shortly after the election and on a White House meeting she attended in mid-December of that year during which strategies and theories to influence the outcome of the election were discussed.
Powell was scheduled to go on trial on Monday with lawyer Kenneth Chesebro after each filed a demand for a speedy trial. Jury selection was set to start Friday. The development means that Chesebro will go on trial by himself, though prosecutors said earlier that they also planned to look into the possibility of offering him a plea deal.
Barry Coburn, a Washington-based lawyer for Powell, declined to comment on Thursday.
A lower-profile defendant in the case, bail bondsman Scott Graham Hall, last month pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor charges. He was sentenced to five years of probation and agreed to testify in further proceedings.
Prosecutors allege that Powell conspired with Hall and others to access election equipment without authorization and hired computer forensics firm SullivanStrickler to send a team to Coffee County, in south Georgia, to copy software and data from voting machines and computers there. The indictment says a person who is not named sent an email to a top SullivanStrickler executive and instructed him to send all data copied from Dominion Voting Systems equipment in Coffee County to an unidentified lawyer associated with Powell and the Trump campaign.
veryGood! (62)
Related
- Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
- Olivia Munn Shares Health Update Amid Breast Cancer Journey
- Love Is Blind's Shaina Hurley Shares She Was Diagnosed With Cancer While Pregnant
- Imanaga, 2 relievers combine for no-hitter, lead Cubs over Pirates 12-0
- Former Danish minister for Greenland discusses Trump's push to acquire island
- White Lotus' Meghann Fahy Debuts Daring Sheer Lingerie Look on Red Carpet
- NFL schedule today: Everything to know about Ravens vs. Chiefs on Thursday
- Donald Trump’s youngest son has enrolled at New York University
- McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
- 4 friends. 3 deaths, 9 months later: What killed Kansas City Chiefs fans remains a mystery
Ranking
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- Republican Liz Cheney endorses Kamala Harris
- A former University of Iowa manager embezzled funds, an audit finds
- There's no SSI check scheduled for this month: Don't worry, it all comes down to the calendar
- Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
- Make Your NFL Outfit Stadium Suite-Worthy: Clothing
- Lady Gaga's Jaw-Dropping Intricate Headpiece Is the Perfect Illusion
- FBI received tips about online threats involving suspected Georgia school shooter
Recommendation
2 killed, 3 injured in shooting at makeshift club in Houston
Michael Keaton explains how Jenna Ortega made new 'Beetlejuice' movie happen
Ravens not running from emotions in charged rematch with Chiefs
Jimmy McCain, a son of the late Arizona senator, registers as a Democrat and backs Harris
Selena Gomez's "Weird Uncles" Steve Martin and Martin Short React to Her Engagement
John Stamos Reveals Why He Was Kicked Out of a Scientology Church
Why is Beijing interested in a mid-level government aide in New York State?
Patrick Surtain II, Broncos agree to four-year, $96 million extension