Topline
John Eastman—an attorney who helped craft a dubious plan for Congress to reverse former President Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss—invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination before a Georgia grand jury on Wednesday, as the grand jury conducts a wide-ranging probe into 2020 election interference that has neared some of Trump’s close advisors.
Former Trump attorney John Eastman invoked his Fifth Amendment rights in refusing to answer … [+]
Key Facts
Eastman’s attorneys, Charles Burnham and Harvey Silvergate, say they advised the former Trump lawyer not to answer questions “where appropriate,” although they did not disclose the substance of the questions Eastman faced in the closed-door session.
His attorneys advised Eastman to assert both the Fifth Amendment and attorney-client privilege in refusing to answer questions in the probe, which is led by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
Eastman was subpoenaed by the grand jury last month, after the House January 6 committee painted him as a central figure in Trump’s bid to overturn the election, having called on former Vice President Mike Pence to derail the certification of President Joe Biden’s election victory during a joint session of Congress on January 6, 2021.
Silvergate told the New York Times on Wednesday Eastman is “probably” a target of the Georgia probe but isn’t a “legitimate target,” adding that he does not believe Eastman will be convicted, and if Eastman is indicted, he will enter a motion to dismiss the case.
Eastman has said he had never intended to overturn the 2020 election, and aimed only to push for an investigation into what he believed to be illegal voting procedures.
Key Background
In the days ahead of the January 6 Capitol riot, Eastman emerged from relative obscurity as a legal scholar by pushing questionable legal strategies to keep Trump in the White House, including by backing an unsuccessful December 2020 lawsuit to overturn Biden’s victory in four key battleground states (Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin). Even though Trump had called the lawsuit—which was brought by the state of Texas—“the case that everyone has been waiting for,” it was thrown out in a matter of days by the Supreme Court. Eastman later argued that Pence had the ability as vice president to refuse to certify the Electoral College’s results in a congressional session held on January 6, 2021. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis launched a probe into Trump and his allies’ post-election conduct in February 2021, convening a special grand jury that can investigate Trump’s push to reverse his loss in Georgia and recommend charges—but cannot criminally indict anybody on its own. Last month, the Department of Justice obtained a search warrant to seize Eastman’s cell phone for “evidence of specific federal crimes” in an unrelated investigation related to the January 6 riots.
Chief Critic
“By all indications, the District Attorney’s Office has set itself on an unprecedented path of criminalizing controversial or disfavored legal theories, possibly in hopes that the federal government will follow its lead,” Eastman’s attorneys wrote in a statement.
Tangent
Several other Trump aides have been called to testify before the Georgia grand jury. Former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani is a target of the grand jury probe, and he will similarly invoke attorney-client privilege when asked questions about election interference, his attorneys told the New York Times earlier this month. A state judge ruled on Monday Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) must also testify in the investigation, striking down Kemp’s argument that his position as governor disqualifies him, though he is set to testify after his reelection in November.
Further Reading
Who Is John Eastman? The Attorney At The Center Of Trump’s January 6 Strategy. (Forbes)
Trump lawyer John Eastman takes Fifth before Georgia grand jury in election interference probe (CNBC)
Trump Lawyer Proposed Challenging Georgia Senate Elections in Search of Fraud (New York Times)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2022/08/31/trump-attorney-eastman-pleads-the-5th-in-georgia-election-interference-probe/