Georgia Election Defendant Won’t Go To Jail After Prosecutors Asked For Bail To Be Revoked, Judge Rules

Topline

A Georgia state judge declined to revoke bail for Harrison Floyd, a defendant in the Fulton County criminal case over attempts to overturn the 2020 election, after prosecutors argued Floyd should be detained over his inflammatory social media posts—a ruling that could be good for former President Donald Trump as he continues to similarly go after his critics.

Harrison poses for his booking photo on August 24 in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Key Facts

Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee signed off on a modified bond condition, prohibiting Floyd from contacting, attempting to intimidate or posting publicly about any co-defendant, witness or person named in the indictment.

Floyd, who served as a leader for the group Black Voices for Trump, is one of 19 defendants—including Trump—who were charged with trying to overturn the battleground state’s election results, with prosecutors indicting Floyd on three charges stemming from alleged efforts to intimidate Georgia election worker Ruby Freeman and influence her testimony.

Floyd was released on bond after briefly being held in detention upon turning himself into authorities, but Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis asked the court in November for Floyd’s bail to be revoked, citing an alleged “pattern of intimidation” toward co-defendants and witnesses in the case, which violates conditions of his release that bar him from intimidating witnesses.

Prosecutors cited a series of inflammatory social media posts Floyd made, including tweets about Freeman, ex-Trump attorney and former co-defendant Jenna Ellis — which painted her as a liar — and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and election official Gabriel Sterling, referring to the two officials using the poop emoji and saying Raffensperger “needs to call his lawyer” and is “about to go through some things.”

Floyd’s attorneys strongly protested the allegations, denying any of his posts constitute witness intimidation and arguing prosecutors never notified Floyd that his posts were a problem — and even offered him a plea deal — before bringing his motion, and that revoking his bond based on the posts would violate his First Amendment rights.

What To Watch For

Floyd and the other defendants in the Georgia case, including Trump, aren’t likely to face trial on the charges against them until next year, with Willis requesting a trial date of August 5, 2024. The court hasn’t yet ruled on Willis’ request and it’s unclear when a final date will be determined. Four of the 19 original defendants in the trial have already taken plea deals, though it remains to be seen if any more will follow suit, and Floyd’s court filing ahead of Tuesday’s hearing suggests he rejected a formal plea deal from prosecutors. All the remaining defendants in the case, including Floyd, have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.

What We Don’t Know

How McAfee’s ruling in Floyd’s favor could impact Trump. Like Floyd, Trump has gone after his critics on social media, and the ex-president has already had gag orders imposed against him in two cases (though both are currently on pause pending appeals court rulings). Floyd’s attorney noted in their filing before Tuesday’s hearing that Trump’s bond conditions specifically mention not intimidating witnesses through social media while Floyd’s do not, arguing, “A review of President Trump’s social media posts make the State’s decision to go after Harrison Floyd hard to justify.” McAfee’s willingness to spare Floyd in spite of his social media posts could suggest the judge would do the same with Trump — though the fact that social media is specified in the ex-president’s bond conditions could also mean there would be a lower bar for Trump to be punished for his posts than Floyd.

Surprising Fact

Floyd is the only defendant in the Fulton County case who was held in detention before being released on bond, as every other defendant negotiated bond deals with prosecutors prior to turning themselves in. He ultimately spent five nights in jail before being released on a $100,000 bond.

Key Background

Floyd, Trump and the other co-defendants were indicted in Fulton County in August following a yearslong investigation by Willis’ office, bringing 41 total charges against the 19 defendants. Willis alleged the defendants constituted a criminal enterprise who “knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump,” bringing racketeering charges against every defendant that carry a maximum prison sentence of 20 years in addition to other charges. Floyd’s alleged efforts to influence Freeman — who was at the center of a false conspiracy theory pushed on the far-right about election fraud — were part of a broader effort by Trump and his allies to flip the election results, which also included alleged efforts to pressure state legislators and officials, breach election security infrastructure and interfere with Congress’ counting of the ballots through a “fake electors” scheme in which GOP officials submitted an alternate slate of electors claiming Trump won the state. The indictment marks the fourth set of criminal charges against Trump and is one of two the former president faces over his efforts to overturn the election, but marks the first case in which the ex-president’s allies have also faced criminal charges for their post-election activities.