A Georgia judge on Monday denied an attempt by Donald Trump to stop Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ investigation into whether the former president and his allies interfered in the state’s 2020 presidential election, calling his allegations irregularities in the investigation as “exaggerated”.
In a nine-page ruling, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled Monday that neither Trump nor Cathleen Latham, a “surrogate constituent” of the former president who questions the investigation, had the legal standing to block the investigation into this moment.
He said his claims are “insufficient” because “while being the subject (or even the target) of a highly publicized criminal investigation is probably an unpleasant experience, no court has held that that status alone provides a basis for courts to interfere with or stop the investigation.
The ruling is the second against Trump on the issue in two weeks. The Georgia Supreme Court rejected a similar request from the former president on July 17. A third petition is pending in Fulton County Superior Court, with a hearing scheduled for August 10.
In his ruling on Monday, McBurney suggested that his ruling should make the third action moot.
He noted that Trump could raise the same concerns in court after he is impeached, but said it is premature for him to do so now.
“Guessing what that image would look like before the investigative dots are connected may be a popular game for the media and blogosphere, but it is not a role suitable for courts and formal legal argumentation,” McBurney wrote.
“There will be a time and a forum in which Trump and Latham can raise their concerns about the constitutionality of the Special Purpose Grand Jury statutes, about the performance of this particular Special Purpose Grand Jury (and the judge who oversees it), and on the propriety of allowing the Fulton County District Attorney to remain involved in any criminal proceedings, should any result from the work of this Special Purpose Grand Jury. That time is not now and that forum is not here.”
