(NewsNation) — The judge overseeing the Georgia election subversion case against former President Donald Trump and 18 codefendants will be hearing motions on the case on Friday.
Trump’s lawyers are seeking to have the indictment thrown out on First Amendment grounds, an argument Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee has rejected when it comes to some of Trump’s codefendants. Lawyers are also expected to seek a delay for several deadlines in the trial, which prosecutors have asked to begin on Aug. 24, 2024.
Lawyers for codefendants John Eastman and Mark Meadows are also expected to argue motions in court on Friday, including one from Eastman asking to be tried separately from Trump.
Trump and the others are charged with attempting to interfere with Georgia’s 2020 election results with charges filed under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act. RICO charges require prosecutors to show a pattern of activity, linking crimes allegedly committed by various actors to prove they were all committed in service to a common goal.
Former Trump attorneys Jenna Ellis, Sidney Powell, Kenneth Chesebro and Atlanta bondsman Scott Hall have already pleaded guilty in the case.