Georgia RICO Trials

[Pink Cashmere]

I am not sure where to post this, so mods, please move it to another board as you see fit, and please accept my apologies.

IIRC, a lot of people got excited about Fulton County’s DA, Fani Willis bringing RICO charges against Donald Trump and company. If I understand correctly, that case has just been delayed, and hasn’t just gone away, is that correct?

Please note, I may not use certain terms correctly, because I am just writing from memory without checking everything I say, and I am okay with being corrected.

So I recall there being an issue some months ago, where there were some allegations or whatever on Ms. Willis’ part, concerning an attorney on the team who she had a romantic relationship with at one point. As far as I understand and remember from when I was paying attention to it, the bottom line ended up being that the DA’s office could proceed with the case, if they removed that attorney. 

So again, for the last week or so, I’ve been paying attention to another RICO trial going on in Fulton County. It is basically about what the defendants say was a record label, but the state says it was a gang that was involved in a lot of criminal activity.

The case got on my radar after seeing FB posts about the state’s star witness, a man that goes by the name Lil Woody or just Woody. There are a lot of interesting things about him testifying, being the prosecution’s star witness, WHY he is on the stand as their star witness, and his testimony in court. I think there are many issues with a lot of that, and I will entertain conversations about that, but that is not my main point with this thread.

My main point with this thread is that the trial going on now and seeing how the Fulton County DA’s office have handled it, give me little to no hope that they can appropriately handle something as big and important as the RICO charges regarding Donald Trump and company.

I am asking posters here, what do you really think about the RICO charges against Trump and company, and whether you think the Fulton County attorneys are capable of proving what they allege regarding Trump and company?

[gs11rmb]

My husband says Fani Willis "screwed the pooch" when she hired Nathan Wade.  That's not a reflection on his legal expertise but on her lack of judgement to hire a man with whom she was having an intimate relationship.  At the same time, she's tough as nails and I don't think she would have brought charges if she didn't think she had a good case.

The other case you're referring to is the YSL gang case.  That is a hot mess!  Although, most of that seems to be with the judges.  One refused to recuse himself after having meetings with witnesses and was finally 'forcibly' (probably not the right word) recused.  The next only lasted two days before she rightfully recused herself because she had some sort of relationship with a deputy who has a relationship with a witness.  Let's hope this judge lasts...

[finnime]

I think the RICO charges against Trump are legitimate and should definitely be tried. Fulton County, Georgia, looks like the likely place for this to happen. And the DA showed bad judgment having her boyfriend work on the case, but that IMO doesn't make her a problem in other ways. I wish they'd get on with it! The gang case is not something I have any familiarity with. All jurisdictions have weaknesses.

[swamp]

Horrible horrible horrible judgment hiring her boyfriend.    

But I do think she's capable of handling the case.  

[Pink Cashmere]

So will Fani Willis handle Trump’s trial herself? 

Because the state attorneys handling the YSL trial do not inspire confidence in the Fulton County DA’s office. It is already the longest case in Georgia history and the state attorneys say they have 100 more witnesses to call. They have been stuck on 1 witness “Lil Woody”, for 2 months now, and finally turned it over to the defense attorneys to cross examine him Monday, I think. I have watched the videos from inside the courtroom on the days Lil Woody testified and the defense attorneys seem to have their stuff together way better than the state’s attorneys. This trial being so messy on the state’s part is why I started wondering about Trump’s case.

[gs11rmb]

Aug 28, 2024 16:56:24 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

So will Fani Willis handle Trump’s trial herself? 

Because the state attorneys handling the YSL trial do not inspire confidence in the Fulton County DA’s office. It is already the longest case in Georgia history and the state attorneys say they have 100 more witnesses to call. They have been stuck on 1 witness “Lil Woody”, for 2 months now, and finally turned it over to the defense attorneys to cross examine him Monday, I think. I have watched the videos from inside the courtroom on the days Lil Woody testified and the defense attorneys seem to have their stuff together way better than the state’s attorneys. This trial being so messy on the state’s part is why I started wondering about Trump’s case.

I don't think that's been announced.  Part of me wants to see her question him on the stand but I doubt his lawyers would ever allow that to happen.

She's definitely the type of woman that makes you sit up straight!

[jerseygirl]

Very confused cause thought this was Yves St Laurent on trial but seems to be a rap group

[Opti]

So again, for the last week or so, I’ve been paying attention to another RICO trial going on in Fulton County. It is basically about what the defendants say was a record label, but the state says it was a gang that was involved in a lot of criminal activity.

The case got on my radar after seeing FB posts about the state’s star witness, a man that goes by the name Lil Woody or just Woody. There are a lot of interesting things about him testifying, being the prosecution’s star witness, WHY he is on the stand as their star witness, and his testimony in court. I think there are many issues with a lot of that, and I will entertain conversations about that, but that is not my main point with this thread.

Pink, I think this is a different animal and I wouldn't draw any conclusions of what could be handled or not given the case above looks pretty complex. Trying to pin down a habitual liar and others in his circle can be challenging. Trump being rich has a harder hiding things than people much poorer than he is.

Will it probably be long and painful, yes. I like to think we are entering back into a real world where justice prevails more often like it did pre-Trump.

[Pink Cashmere]

Aug 29, 2024 7:21:01 GMT -5 gs11rmb said:

Aug 28, 2024 16:56:24 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

So will Fani Willis handle Trump’s trial herself? 

Because the state attorneys handling the YSL trial do not inspire confidence in the Fulton County DA’s office. It is already the longest case in Georgia history and the state attorneys say they have 100 more witnesses to call. They have been stuck on 1 witness “Lil Woody”, for 2 months now, and finally turned it over to the defense attorneys to cross examine him Monday, I think. I have watched the videos from inside the courtroom on the days Lil Woody testified and the defense attorneys seem to have their stuff together way better than the state’s attorneys. This trial being so messy on the state’s part is why I started wondering about Trump’s case.

I don't think that's been announced.  Part of me wants to see her question him on the stand but I doubt his lawyers would ever allow that to happen.

She's definitely the type of woman that makes you sit up straight!

I asked that because if the 2 attorneys handling the YSL trial are indicative of the quality of Ms. Willis’ team, they should just sit down. The YSL case is such a big deal that I thought the state’s best and brightest were probably handling it, so ummmm.

Just in the videos I’ve watched, they hadn’t shared their evidence with the defense attorneys weeks after the first judge told them to. They have played audio and presented things on screen to the jury that were supposed to have been redacted. The first judge was recused because of an ex parte meeting between Kenneth Copeland (“Lil Woody”, the state’s star witness), his stand in attorney, the DA’s office and the Judge, when Copeland was ordered to jail because he said he pleaded the fifth. When defense attorney Brian Steel asked about the meeting in the courtroom, (without the witness and jury present) and refused to reveal how he knew about the meeting, the judge ordered him to serve 20 days in court for contempt of court.

It is on record now that during that meeting, one of the state attorneys reminded Kenneth Copeland that he has USE immunity and told him they won’t charge him for perjury if he tells “little” lies on the stand, but if he confesses on the stand to the murder that this part of the trial is about, they’re going to lock him up. That doesn’t make sense. He has to tell the truth on the stand (except they said they don’t care if he tells “little lies”), but if he did commit the murder, if he tells that particular truth, they are going to lock him up? How does that make sense? Especially now that the defense attorneys are implicating him in the murder? They also told him that because he has immunity, if he pleads the fifth, he is going to sit in jail until the whole trial is over, which at this rate could take years.

Copeland’s stand in attorney that was in the meeting had to take the stand, and she said that’s what the state attorney told Copeland. Copeland said the same thing under the defense cross examination this week. And some of it is in the transcript from the meeting, even though Copeland’s attorney said the transcript is not complete because the state attorneys told the judge to leave his chambers during parts of the meeting, and the court reporter stopped transcribing during those times.

Copeland is an admitted liar who repeatedly said even before the trial started, that he was lying to the police back in 2015, during the interrogations that the state is using as the basis for making him testify. One of the defense attorneys presented evidence yesterday and said that the state made Copeland testify as if he wasn’t a liar, but even when the trial started, they had charges against him for making false statements regarding an incident the last time he was in jail. So they were accusing him of being a liar themselves, even as the trial started.

There is a lot more that the state attorneys have done to make the trial look like it’s a circus. I don’t know anything about being an attorney, but I do know that there are rules. And they have been fussed at by the judges several times for not following the rules or the judges’ orders and causing a lot of delays, and they have done some things that look shady at best.

Fulton County DA’s office is going to have to do a LOT better with the Trump case, because they look like unprofessional idiots right now.

[Pink Cashmere]

Aug 29, 2024 10:54:36 GMT -5 Opti said:

So again, for the last week or so, I’ve been paying attention to another RICO trial going on in Fulton County. It is basically about what the defendants say was a record label, but the state says it was a gang that was involved in a lot of criminal activity.

The case got on my radar after seeing FB posts about the state’s star witness, a man that goes by the name Lil Woody or just Woody. There are a lot of interesting things about him testifying, being the prosecution’s star witness, WHY he is on the stand as their star witness, and his testimony in court. I think there are many issues with a lot of that, and I will entertain conversations about that, but that is not my main point with this thread.

Pink, I think this is a different animal and I wouldn't draw any conclusions of what could be handled or not given the case above looks pretty complex. Trying to pin down a habitual liar and others in his circle can be challenging. Trump being rich has a harder hiding things than people much poorer than he is.

Will it probably be long and painful, yes. I like to think we are entering back into a real world where justice prevails more often like it did pre-Trump.

I’m not really speaking on the complexities of the case, more on the conduct and professionalism of the state attorneys. When they raise an objection, half the time, the judge has to basically tell them what to say for their reason for the objection. One of them is not very articulate. They are a reflection of the Fulton County’s DA’s office, and it’s not a good look. 

[Opti]

Aug 29, 2024 11:25:42 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

Aug 29, 2024 10:54:36 GMT -5 Opti said:

Pink, I think this is a different animal and I wouldn't draw any conclusions of what could be handled or not given the case above looks pretty complex. Trying to pin down a habitual liar and others in his circle can be challenging. Trump being rich has a harder hiding things than people much poorer than he is.

Will it probably be long and painful, yes. I like to think we are entering back into a real world where justice prevails more often like it did pre-Trump.

I’m not really speaking on the complexities of the case, more on the conduct and professionalism of the state attorneys. When they raise an objection, half the time, the judge has to basically tell them what to say for their reason for the objection. One of them is not very articulate. They are a reflection of the Fulton County’s DA’s office, and it’s not a good look. 

It's not, but is there any reason you think they would be assigned to Trump's case? I don't get news from Georgia in NJ unless its a national interest story.

[gs11rmb]

Pink Cashmere the YSL trial has been going on for so long that I don't think people are paying much attention.  I am surprised that charges haven't been dismissed.  The behavior of the first judge was outrageous.  I would hope Fani Willis would use the best prosecutors for Trump.

[Pink Cashmere]

Aug 29, 2024 12:16:11 GMT -5 Opti said:

Aug 29, 2024 11:25:42 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

I’m not really speaking on the complexities of the case, more on the conduct and professionalism of the state attorneys. When they raise an objection, half the time, the judge has to basically tell them what to say for their reason for the objection. One of them is not very articulate. They are a reflection of the Fulton County’s DA’s office, and it’s not a good look. 

It's not, but is there any reason you think they would be assigned to Trump's case? I don't get news from Georgia in NJ unless its a national interest story.

No, I have no reason to think they will be assigned to Trump’s case. I am saying that this case was such a big deal and got so much attention in the beginning, because of the RICO charges and Ms. Willis’ promises to address gang violence, that I would’ve thought some of the state’s best attorneys would’ve been assigned to it. If these 2 are among the best in the Fulton County’s DA office, that is very concerning. But maybe I’m wrong and they didn’t feel the need to use some of their best attorneys for this trial.

[Pink Cashmere]

Aug 29, 2024 12:32:53 GMT -5 gs11rmb said:

Pink Cashmere the YSL trial has been going on for so long that I don't think people are paying much attention.  I am surprised that charges haven't been dismissed.  The behavior of the first judge was outrageous.  I would hope Fani Willis would use the best prosecutors for Trump.

I admit that I didn’t start paying attention until recently, when clips from Kenneth Copeland’s testimony started showing up on my FB feed because of his antics on the stand. He is serious with his answers, but sometimes it would be amusing if so much wasn’t at stake. He has to be one of the worst start witnesses ever. He says he was in “special Ed” classes in school. One of the state attorneys even chuckled a couple of times. He dropped out in or before high school. He says he can’t read, see or hear that well. He says he can’t remember anything he told investigators in 2015, because he was always lying and making things up. He tells attorneys they have to talk to him in a way he can understand. If their questions are too long, or contains big words, he doesn’t understand the questions, until they figure out how to word it in a way he understands. I honestly don’t think he is faking when he gets confused by those long questions. 

Like you, I hope Ms. Willis uses the best attorneys she has for Trump.

[Pink Cashmere]

tallguy, Tennesseer, billisonboard, djAdvocate, all of you, and probably some people I am not remembering right now, consistently post on threads concerning Donald Trump and his shenanigans. 

Do any of you believe that the Fulton County DA’s office are good enough at what they do, to handle the trial when the shit hits the fan, with what they have charged Trump and company with?

I guess I am just looking for assurance from somebody, anybody,  that is smarter than me, to say that they have confidence that the Fulton County DA’s office can legitimately prove what they have charged Trump with. 

I am not discounting gs11rmb’s hope, because I have the same hopes, but the current RICO case and trial really has me worried about how well they are prepared to prosecute Trump’s case, or not. 

[djAdvocate]

it is a daring gambit. but federal prosecutors RARELY bring charges in cases they can't win.

i would rate her odds for any rando case at 99:1 in favor of her winning.

because this is a particularly thorny case, given the subject, and the massive efforts that will be made from both inside and outside the case to defeat it, i would lower those odds to 4:1 in favor of her winning.

i would feel better if it were not a RICO case.

[Pink Cashmere]

Aug 30, 2024 18:27:57 GMT -5 djAdvocate said:

it is a daring gambit. but federal prosecutors RARELY bring charges in cases they can't win.

i would rate her odds for any rando case at 99:1 in favor of her winning.

because this is a particularly thorny case, given the subject, and the massive efforts that will be made from both inside and outside the case to defeat it, i would lower those odds to 4:1 in favor of her winning.

i would feel better if it were not a RICO case.

From what I’ve read, 2 DA’s and the feds have declined to prosecute this case. 

I agree with you that federal prosecutors rarely pursue cases that they can’t win. During my 20+ years as a federal employee, I learned early in my career, that the feds are even more scary than local police, because when the feds get you, you are GOT. The only thing I might do is drive faster than the speed limit, and I am wary about even doing that, since I got 2 speeding tickets in less than one week, about 20 years ago. 

I don’t like dealing with local police, even on a traffic stop. I most definitely am not trying to tangle with federal investigators.

Anyway, when you speak of the odds of the state winning the case (I ASSume you mean the YSL case), are you aware of all the mistakes they have made, including some that had the judges presiding over the case fussing at them. I ask that because I feel like they have NO room for error when they prosecute Trump, and the current RICO case kinda makes them look like bumbling fools.

[Opti]

Aug 29, 2024 13:10:19 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

Aug 29, 2024 12:16:11 GMT -5 Opti said:

It's not, but is there any reason you think they would be assigned to Trump's case? I don't get news from Georgia in NJ unless its a national interest story.

No, I have no reason to think they will be assigned to Trump’s case. I am saying that this case was such a big deal and got so much attention in the beginning, because of the RICO charges and Ms. Willis’ promises to address gang violence, that I would’ve thought some of the state’s best attorneys would’ve been assigned to it. If these 2 are among the best in the Fulton County’s DA office, that is very concerning. But maybe I’m wrong and they didn’t feel the need to use some of their best attorneys for this trial.

Sometimes they think a case would be winnable and it turns out not to be true. And sadly, any county or state has to break in their lawyers by having them try cases. I did Google as see what she promised. What shocked me was per Google there are somwhere around 135 gangs in Atlanta.    I did not expect that. I think gang cases in general can be hard to win and that one seems weirder than average.

It takes experience to deal with massive weirdness. It takes time and a mindset to get there and no surprise it would be rare to have a team that are all highly experienced.

[djAdvocate]

Aug 30, 2024 18:47:44 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

Aug 30, 2024 18:27:57 GMT -5 djAdvocate said:

it is a daring gambit. but federal prosecutors RARELY bring charges in cases they can't win.

i would rate her odds for any rando case at 99:1 in favor of her winning.

because this is a particularly thorny case, given the subject, and the massive efforts that will be made from both inside and outside the case to defeat it, i would lower those odds to 4:1 in favor of her winning.

i would feel better if it were not a RICO case.

From what I’ve read, 2 DA’s and the feds have declined to prosecute this case. 

I agree with you that federal prosecutors rarely pursue cases that they can’t win. During my 20+ years as a federal employee, I learned early in my career, that the feds are even more scary than local police, because when the feds get you, you are GOT. The only thing I might do is drive faster than the speed limit, and I am wary about even doing that, since I got 2 speeding tickets in less than one week, about 20 years ago. 

I don’t like dealing with local police, even on a traffic stop. I most definitely am not trying to tangle with federal investigators.

Anyway, when you speak of the odds of the state winning the case (I ASSume you mean the YSL case), are you aware of all the mistakes they have made, including some that had the judges presiding over the case fussing at them. I ask that because I feel like they have NO room for error when they prosecute Trump, and the current RICO case kinda makes them look like bumbling fools.

i don't think they have made any errors that would endanger the case so far, and i don't think that they will in the future.

and yes, i would wager that i have followed this case and the other three about as closely as anyone on the board.  i was literally obsessed with them for months.

as to the other two DA's, i was not aware of that, but it doesn't change my opinion.  as i said, this is not my favourite case because of the RICO aspect of it.  i don't actually like RICO cases, for reasons i won't bother articulating.  but if the DA thinks she has him on this one, i give it an 80% chance of success.

as to the feds passing on it, i don't think that is true.  parts of this case will end up in other cases which have yet to reach trial.

[Pink Cashmere]

Aug 30, 2024 19:02:14 GMT -5 djAdvocate said:

Aug 30, 2024 18:47:44 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

From what I’ve read, 2 DA’s and the feds have declined to prosecute this case. 

I agree with you that federal prosecutors rarely pursue cases that they can’t win. During my 20+ years as a federal employee, I learned early in my career, that the feds are even more scary than local police, because when the feds get you, you are GOT. The only thing I might do is drive faster than the speed limit, and I am wary about even doing that, since I got 2 speeding tickets in less than one week, about 20 years ago. 

I don’t like dealing with local police, even on a traffic stop. I most definitely am not trying to tangle with federal investigators.

Anyway, when you speak of the odds of the state winning the case (I ASSume you mean the YSL case), are you aware of all the mistakes they have made, including some that had the judges presiding over the case fussing at them. I ask that because I feel like they have NO room for error when they prosecute Trump, and the current RICO case kinda makes them look like bumbling fools.

i don't think they have made any errors that would endanger the case so far, and i don't think that they will in the future.

and yes, i would wager that i have followed this case and the other three about as closely as anyone on the board.  i was literally obsessed with them for months.

as to the other two DA's, i was not aware of that, but it doesn't change my opinion.  as i said, this is not my favourite case because of the RICO aspect of it.  i don't actually like RICO cases, for reasons i won't bother articulating.  but if the DA thinks she has him on this one, i give it an 80% chance of success.

as to the feds passing on it, i don't think that is true.  parts of this case will end up in other cases which have yet to reach trial.

I don’t know anything about laws and courts. The only times I’ve been in a courtroom were because of issues with my exhusband not paying court ordered child support, and another time when I had a traffic ticket. Oh, and when I had to appear as a witness for my insurance company when an uninsured driver hit my car and my insurance company ended up suing the owner of the car that ran into my car, for what what my insurance company had paid because I had insurance for uninsured drivers. And I’ve been called as a juror twice, and served as a juror both times. But even with having served as a juror, I still don’t claim to know how things really work with laws and court, beyond the instructions I was given at the time.

Which reminds me, as a side note, that this week, a juror asked to be released from jury duty because they had accepted a job in Arkansas. It doesn’t look like they are going to release that juror, and if I were that juror, that would really piss me off after all the time spent on this trial. The state has deemed Copeland as a “hostile witness”, is there a term for a hostile juror? Because honestly, that is what I would be if I was that juror, because it’s not the juror’s fault that the trial has gone on this long and will probably go on into 2025, and nobody is going to rescue the juror if they lose opportunities to support themselves and their family and pay their bills because they are a juror on this case that is taking forever. That would really make me mad if I got hemmed up like that as a juror, and couldn’t do what was best for myself and my family as far as a job that I needed. 

Anyway, I  am not going to try to argue with anything you wrote, I am still trying to understand some things myself. But I do appreciate you chiming in with your perspective and opinions. Thank you.

[Tennesseer]

Pink Cashmere - I have faith in Willis's office in bringing trump to trial.  Yea, she made a few missteps earlier on but they were not fatal.  Whether trump is convicted or not remains to be seen.

Not familiar at all regarding the YSL RICO case.  I found this article dated yesterday and will give it a read in a bit to try and make heads and tails regarding the issues.

Everything We Know About YSL’s RICO Case

[tallguy]

 I have faith in Ms. Willis to handle the case against Trump, if she is allowed to continue it.  I have heard nothing about the other case mentioned so cannot comment on the other prosecutors in that case.  And to be honest, I have put this one on the back burner as well.  My understanding is that if the RICO case against Trump is in danger, that is due FAR more to the actions of the U.S. Supreme Court and the Georgia appeals court judges.

I agree with dj that prosecutors very rarely bring cases that they don't believe they will win.  Was this not also the case that had several defendants plead guilty early on?  Chesebro, Powell, Ellis, and Hall, maybe?  There were definitely crimes committed, and justice demands that Trump be prosecuted, convicted, and jailed.  That doesn't always happen, however, and I do think there are far too many people willing to sell their integrity to avoid doing that.  There are some people in Georgia politics who did stand strong against Trump's attempts to overthrow the election.  I am not all that confident that all of the judges involved in various appeals will do the same, unfortunately. 

[billisonboard]

Aug 30, 2024 18:22:04 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

tallguy , Tennesseer , billisonboard , djAdvocate , all of you, and probably some people I am not remembering right now, consistently post on threads concerning Donald Trump and his shenanigans. 

Do any of you believe that the Fulton County DA’s office are good enough at what they do, to handle the trial when the shit hits the fan, with what they have charged Trump and company with?

I guess I am just looking for assurance from somebody, anybody,  that is smarter than me, to say that they have confidence that the Fulton County DA’s office can legitimately prove what they have charged Trump with. 

I am not discounting gs11rmb ’s hope, because I have the same hopes, but the current RICO case and trial really has me worried about how well they are prepared to prosecute Trump’s case, or not. 

Since you asked:

I started with a review of "what they have charged Trump and company with" available here: Read the full Georgia indictment against Trump and 18 allies It is lengthy and I didn't read all of it. I focused on the select charges involving Trump, which is only 13 of the 41 counts in the indictment. tallguy correctly indicated that some defendants had pled guilty. I am not sure if any of the charges they so pled were ones that Trump was charged with also.

The first count is the big one covering all defendants, it is the conspiracy charge, It is based on 161 acts listed in the indictment. The other counts are based on singular acts.

I don't see the elected county district attorney being able to handle the day to day trial process. The responsibilities of the office are too far reaching for her to be tied up exclusively with one trial for an extended period of time. So other attorneys will have to handle it.

I question whether there is an attorney working as an assistant district attorney at the county level anywhere who can clearly guide a jury through testimony proving 161 different acts done over years throughout the country. Anyone demonstrating anything close to that skill level would have been enticed to a bigger and better job years ago.

I see a bogged down process leading to at best a conviction on a couple of the lesser counts and a hung jury on the conspiracy charge.

My two cents since you asked. 

[tallguy]

Aug 30, 2024 21:57:20 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Aug 30, 2024 18:22:04 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

tallguy , Tennesseer , billisonboard , djAdvocate , all of you, and probably some people I am not remembering right now, consistently post on threads concerning Donald Trump and his shenanigans. 

Do any of you believe that the Fulton County DA’s office are good enough at what they do, to handle the trial when the shit hits the fan, with what they have charged Trump and company with?

I guess I am just looking for assurance from somebody, anybody,  that is smarter than me, to say that they have confidence that the Fulton County DA’s office can legitimately prove what they have charged Trump with. 

I am not discounting gs11rmb ’s hope, because I have the same hopes, but the current RICO case and trial really has me worried about how well they are prepared to prosecute Trump’s case, or not. 

Since you asked:

I started with a review of "what they have charged Trump and company with" available here: Read the full Georgia indictment against Trump and 18 allies It is lengthy and I didn't read all of it. I focused on the select charges involving Trump, which is only 13 of the 41 counts in the indictment. tallguy correctly indicated that some defendants had pled guilty. I am not sure if any of the charges they so pled were ones that Trump was charged with also.

The first count is the big one covering all defendants, it is the conspiracy charge, It is based on 161 acts listed in the indictment. The other counts are based on singular acts.

I don't see the elected county district attorney being able to handle the day to day trial process. The responsibilities of the office are too far reaching for her to be tied up exclusively with one trial for an extended period of time. So other attorneys will have to handle it.

I question whether there is an attorney working as an assistant district attorney at the county level anywhere who can clearly guide a jury through testimony proving 161 different acts done over years throughout the country. Anyone demonstrating anything close to that skill level would have been enticed to a bigger and better job years ago.

I see a bogged down process leading to at best a conviction on a couple of the lesser counts and a hung jury on the conspiracy charge.

My two cents since you asked. 

I'm not so sure that is the case.  This is so high-profile that a win is necessary, and it can totally make a career.  Additionally, Trump and his team have done so much to make it personal that she may be even more driven to handle it herself.  I would also anticipate a number of delays during the trial so it is not like she would be totally taken up with it at all times.  It is possible that she may delegate certain parts to other prosecutors, but I have difficulty seeing how she would take herself out of it.

[billisonboard]

Aug 30, 2024 22:56:17 GMT -5 tallguy said:

Aug 30, 2024 21:57:20 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Since you asked:

I started with a review of "what they have charged Trump and company with" available here: Read the full Georgia indictment against Trump and 18 allies It is lengthy and I didn't read all of it. I focused on the select charges involving Trump, which is only 13 of the 41 counts in the indictment. tallguy correctly indicated that some defendants had pled guilty. I am not sure if any of the charges they so pled were ones that Trump was charged with also.

The first count is the big one covering all defendants, it is the conspiracy charge, It is based on 161 acts listed in the indictment. The other counts are based on singular acts.

I don't see the elected county district attorney being able to handle the day to day trial process. The responsibilities of the office are too far reaching for her to be tied up exclusively with one trial for an extended period of time. So other attorneys will have to handle it.

I question whether there is an attorney working as an assistant district attorney at the county level anywhere who can clearly guide a jury through testimony proving 161 different acts done over years throughout the country. Anyone demonstrating anything close to that skill level would have been enticed to a bigger and better job years ago.

I see a bogged down process leading to at best a conviction on a couple of the lesser counts and a hung jury on the conspiracy charge.

My two cents since you asked. 

I'm not so sure that is the case.  This is so high-profile that a win is necessary, and it can totally make a career.  Additionally, Trump and his team have done so much to make it personal that she may be even more driven to handle it herself.  I would also anticipate a number of delays during the trial so it is not like she would be totally taken up with it at all times.  It is possible that she may delegate certain parts to other prosecutors, but I have difficulty seeing how she would take herself out of it.

A point in your favor: I checked and she is currently running for reelection so that will be off her plate until 2028. On the other hand, I question the impact on a jury of her stepping in and out of the presentation of the case. That seems tricky.

[tallguy]

Aug 31, 2024 9:02:23 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Aug 30, 2024 22:56:17 GMT -5 tallguy said:

I'm not so sure that is the case.  This is so high-profile that a win is necessary, and it can totally make a career.  Additionally, Trump and his team have done so much to make it personal that she may be even more driven to handle it herself.  I would also anticipate a number of delays during the trial so it is not like she would be totally taken up with it at all times.  It is possible that she may delegate certain parts to other prosecutors, but I have difficulty seeing how she would take herself out of it.

A point in your favor: I checked and she is currently running for reelection so that will be off her plate until 2028. On the other hand, I question the impact on a jury of her stepping in and out of the presentation of the case. That seems tricky.

Large or complex cases will typically have more than one prosecutor assigned.  For example, in the OJ Simpson trial Marcia Clark was the lead attorney.  Chris Darden was co-counsel and I think handled several parts of the questioning.  There were also several others as part of the team, although I do not know how much they actually did in court itself.  It would probably be a fair assumption that if Willis were to handle lead on this case she would not be doing any others.  Those cases would be left to other prosecutors in the DA's office allowing Willis to focus on only one.

[billisonboard]

Aug 31, 2024 12:16:43 GMT -5 tallguy said:

Aug 31, 2024 9:02:23 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

A point in your favor: I checked and she is currently running for reelection so that will be off her plate until 2028. On the other hand, I question the impact on a jury of her stepping in and out of the presentation of the case. That seems tricky.

Large or complex cases will typically have more than one prosecutor assigned.  For example, in the OJ Simpson trial Marcia Clark was the lead attorney.  Chris Darden was co-counsel and I think handled several parts of the questioning.  There were also several others as part of the team, although I do not know how much they actually did in court itself.  It would probably be a fair assumption that if Willis were to handle lead on this case she would not be doing any others.  Those cases would be left to other prosecutors in the DA's office allowing Willis to focus on only one.

Yes, more than one member of a prosecutor's office works on a major case. Not sure it was critical but if the goal is a guilty verdict, the OJ case won't be one to support having multiple people presenting to the jury.

Question in my mind: How often does the elected District Attorney, particularly in large counties, try cases? I see it as an administrator position. Admit I could be off base on that being the case.

[tallguy]

I would guess that they always have the option, though generally will delegate out case assignments to staff.   

[Opti]

Aug 31, 2024 12:39:59 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Aug 31, 2024 12:16:43 GMT -5 tallguy said:

Large or complex cases will typically have more than one prosecutor assigned.  For example, in the OJ Simpson trial Marcia Clark was the lead attorney.  Chris Darden was co-counsel and I think handled several parts of the questioning.  There were also several others as part of the team, although I do not know how much they actually did in court itself.  It would probably be a fair assumption that if Willis were to handle lead on this case she would not be doing any others.  Those cases would be left to other prosecutors in the DA's office allowing Willis to focus on only one.

Yes, more than one member of a prosecutor's office works on a major case. Not sure it was critical but if the goal is a guilty verdict, the OJ case won't be one to support having multiple people presenting to the jury.

Question in my mind: How often does the elected District Attorney, particularly in large counties, try cases? I see it as an administrator position. Admit I could be off base on that being the case.

I think you are right, but Swamp and other lurking board lawyers probably have a better idea on that than I do.

[billisonboard]

Aug 31, 2024 13:50:04 GMT -5 tallguy said:

I would guess that they always have the option, though generally will delegate out case assignments to staff.   

I don't see who or how they would be answerable to anyone other than the voters, so I agree they would have that option as "the boss."