Trump’s ex-lawyer Giuliani has to testify before the Georgia grand jury

WASHINGTON, July 20 (Reuters) – Rudy Giuliani, who previously served as Donald Trump’s personal attorney, was ordered by a judge to testify in August before a special jury in Georgia investigating the former president’s alleged attempts to overturn the election from 2020 to overturn results.

“It is hereby ordered that Rudolph William Louis Giuliani appear and testify” before the grand jury of the State Superior Court of Georgia in Fulton County beginning Aug. 9, the order filed Wednesday said, after Giuliani, who tried , to block the subpoena, said: did not show up for a hearing in New York.

This month, the special jury in Georgia issued subpoenas for Senator Lindsey Graham and members of Trump’s former legal team, including Giuliani, a former mayor of New York City. Continue reading

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The investigation was launched after Trump was recorded in a January 2, 2021 phone call in which he pressured Georgia’s foreign minister to overturn the state’s election results due to unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud. Giuliani, who was not immediately available for comment, led Trump’s legal effort to overturn election results in several swing states, including Georgia, won by President Joe Biden.

In the call, Trump urged Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, another Republican, to “find” enough votes to reverse his defeat by Democrat Biden in Georgia.

The transcript quotes Trump on Raffensperger: “I just want to find 11,780 votes” — the number Trump needed to win Georgia.

Trump denied wrongdoing in the call. In January, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis requested the grand jury, saying her subpoena power was needed to compel testimony.

Legal experts have said Trump’s phone calls may have violated at least three state election laws: conspiracy to commit voter fraud, criminal solicitation of voter fraud, and willful interference with voting duties.

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Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by David Gregorio

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