First plea deal in Trump election case in Georgia
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A bail bondsman has become the first of Donald Trump’s 18 co-defendants to take a plea deal in a surprising development in the Georgia election interference case.

Scott Hall, 59, pleaded guilty on Friday to five misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with the performance of election duties.

He made a deal with District Attorney Fani Willis to serve five years probation after he was indicted last month.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee also handed him a $1,000 fine for each charge.

Hall was accused of unlawfully breaching information in voting machines in Coffee County, Georgia in an effort to access voter data while Trump allies were alleging massive voter fraud.

Bail bondsman Scott Hall has become the first Donald Trump co-defendant to take a plea deal in the election interference case

Bail bondsman Scott Hall has become the first Donald Trump co-defendant to take a plea deal in the election interference case

Bail bondsman Scott Hall has become the first Donald Trump co-defendant to take a plea deal in the election interference case

The alleged offense took place just a day after the Capitol riot.

The no-jail deal raises the prospect that Willis can obtain testimony from Hall as she pursues other defendants in the alleged conspiracy, which according to a lengthy indictment extends all the way to former President Donald Trump and some of his top advisors in his effort to overturn the election.

Already, several people indicted in the alleged conspiracy have sought to sever their own cases or move prosecution into federal court, as former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows has don.

Hall is described as taking part in key episodes outlined in the grant jury indictment released last month.

His relatively small roll took place when a Republican party official phoned Hall seeking help with an errand.

Scott Hall with Donald Trump - Hall became the first of Trump's co-conspirators to surrender to authorities in Atlanta

Scott Hall with Donald Trump - Hall became the first of Trump's co-conspirators to surrender to authorities in Atlanta

Scott Hall with Donald Trump – Hall became the first of Trump’s co-conspirators to surrender to authorities in Atlanta

The indictment cited a November 20 email that said Hall 'has been looking into the election on behalf of the President at the request of David Bossie,' a key Trump advisor

The indictment cited a November 20 email that said Hall 'has been looking into the election on behalf of the President at the request of David Bossie,' a key Trump advisor

The indictment cited a November 20 email that said Hall ‘has been looking into the election on behalf of the President at the request of David Bossie,’ a key Trump advisor

According to the indictment, Hall spoke with former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark for more than an hour amid the overturn effort

According to the indictment, Hall spoke with former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark for more than an hour amid the overturn effort

According to the indictment, Hall spoke with former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark for more than an hour amid the overturn effort

Hall called her back hours later. What they spoke about, according to prosecutors, was a plan to access voting machines in rural Coffee County, Georgia, to back up wild claims by ‘Kraken’ lawyer Sidney Powell about massive election fraud in the 2020 election.

Powell is also charged, and like others has pleaded not guilty.

It wasn’t part of any law enforcement investigation or an official canvass or recount like the ones Georgia election officials carried out. It was, prosecutors said in a stunning indictment charging a 161-act conspiracy, an ‘unlawful breach of election equipment.’

The official, Cathy Latham, phoned a forensic data firm to arrange transportation from the airport along with the chief operating officer of the firm.

The following day, January 7, when repair crews were still fixing smashed windows inside the U.S. Capitol following a riot, Hall was soon joined by another official – now known only as ‘Individual 24’ – to engage in what prosecutors call ‘racketeering activity’ and an ‘overt act’ in a complex conspiracy.

They headed to the Coffee County board of elections. Elections director Misty Hampton was there while a computer forensics team copied data and software from inside county voting machines and equipment.

Collectively, these moves were part of multiple acts sketched out inside Fulton County DA Fani Willis’s sweeping indictment, which charges Trump, senior lawyers including Powell and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and low-level henchmen of carrying out a coordinated conspiracy.

Their actions constituted a ‘criminal racketeering enterprise to overturn Georgia’s presidential election results,’ she said.

Hall testified before the special grand jury that first probed the events. His presence was captured on surveillance video.

He was charged with a total of of seven counts, including election fraud and conspiracy to commit computer theft, as well as violating the state’s RICO statute.

The indictment cited a November 20 email that said Hall ‘has been looking into the election on behalf of the President at the request of David Bossie,’ a key Trump advisor. It called the contact an ‘overt act’ of the conspiracy.

It also describes a January 2, 2021 phone call between Hall and former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark of more than an hour.

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