Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is investigating whether the former president Donald Trump and his allies broke the law by trying to reverse their defeat in the 2020 election in the state of Georgia, is requesting search warrants in the casea sign that the wide-ranging investigation has entered a new phase, according to The Associated Press.
The revelation came Monday in a court order filed by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, who oversees the special grand jury appointed to assist in the investigation.
In an order that sealed any search warrants and related documents so they would not be made public, McBurney wrote that District Attorney Fani Willis’ office “is now seeking to obtain and execute a series of search warrants, the affidavits of which are based on confidential information acquired during the investigation.”
Prosecutor Fani Willis aims to quickly conclude the work of the grand jury after the midterm elections y could start issuing accusations as early as December, sources familiar with the situation told CNN.
Willis has said his investigation into attempts to subvert the 2020 election will be muted from this week to avoid any appearance of influence in the upcoming elections. But while his investigation won’t make any overt moves in the coming weeks, his team is preparing for a flurry of activity after Election Day.
“I think their hands are tied, certainly, until after the midterms,” Michael J. Moore, a former US attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, told CNN. “She wants to get this out of politics, so to make sure the investigation isn’t forgotten, instead of waving sabers and subpoenaing other witnesses, she would just say we’re going to take this time to reflect on the investigation.”
It is not known who could face an indictment. Prosecutors previously informed 16 Pro-Trump Voters Who Falsely Claimed Donald Trump Won the Election in Georgia in a certificate sent to the National Archives that could be targets of the investigation. Trump’s former lawyer was also told, Rudy Giuliani, that he was a possible target. None have been charged with crimes.
Pursue RICO Act Charges
Willis has said he could bring charges based on the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), a US federal law that provides extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts done as part of an ongoing criminal organization, as part of of your research.
Racketeering charges, sometimes used in gang-related activities, allow prosecutors to bring charges against multiple defendants. Willis could use the law to try to show that Trump and his allies were part of a criminal enterprise in their various efforts to pressure state officials, present fake voters and try to influence the election, according to CNN.
While some legal experts have questioned whether such an approach would be successful in the election interference case, Willis has made clear his preference for the RICO statute.
“The reason I’m a fan of RICO is because I think the jurors are very, very smart,” Willis said at a news conference on a sweeping gang-related indictment over the summer. “They want to know what happened. They want to make an accurate decision about someone’s life. And so RICO is a tool that allows the DA’s office and law enforcement to tell the whole story.”