Former US President Donald Trump plans to turn himself in and be processed at the Fulton County jail on Thursday, following his agreement earlier Monday to a $200,000 bond and other release conditions.
“I’ll be going to Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday to be ARRESTED,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, confirming CNN’s earlier reporting from two sources familiar with the plan.
Several co-defendants in the sweeping Georgia racketeering case have also agreed to the terms of their bond agreements with the district attorney’s office.
Trump’s lawyers Jennifer Little, Drew Findling and Marissa Goldberg met with the district attorney’s office on Monday before the details of the bond agreement were released. Little, Findling and Goldberg are based in the state. Other Trump lawyers have been working behind the scenes on the approach to the bond and Trump’s forthcoming arrest, including Todd Blanche, who has taken the helm as Trump’s primary defense attorney across his multiple criminal indictments.
The release conditions outlined in Trump’s bond order are more extensive than those laid out in the others approved earlier Monday in the case.
Unlike some of his co-defendants, the former president is explicitly barred in the order from using social media to target his 18 co-defendants in the case, as well as any witnesses and the 30 unindicted co-conspirators.
“The Defendant shall perform no act to intimidate any person known to him or her to be a codefendant or witness in this case or to otherwise obstruct the administration of justice,” the order signed by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee states.
“The above shall include, but are not limited to, posts on social media or reposts of posts made by another individual on social media,” the order reads.
The Fulton County election subversion case marks the first time the release conditions for Trump have included a cash bond and a prohibition on intimidation through social media.
The criminal case is the fourth brought against the former president this year. In the previous cases, the conditions for Trump’s release after arrest and pending trial have been largely routine.
In the Mar-a-Lago documents case brought against him by special counsel Jack Smith in Florida, Trump was released on personal recognizance, though there was some pushback from his attorneys on the restrictions that were imposed on his contact with witnesses in that case.
Trump also was released on minimal conditions in Smith’s election subversion case brought in Washington, DC. Those conditions include not being allowed to communicate with anyone known to be a witness in the case unless through an attorney. And in the New York hush money case, Trump was similarly ordered to not communicate about the case with anyone central to it except through one of his attorneys.
Bond orders reached with several defendants
In addition to Trump’s bond orders, several more defendants had bond orders approved Monday. Conservative attorney John Eastman reached a $100,000 bond agreement with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, and defendant Scott Hall, a bail bondsman, also reached a bond agreement with Willis, according to court filings. Hall’s bond was set at $10,000.
Kenneth Chesebro’s bond was set at $100,000 and Ray Smith’s was set at $50,000.
The bond orders include similar language for release, such as that defendants must report to pre-trial supervision every 30 days, and can do so by phone. They’re also barred from communicating with the other 18 co-defendants or any witnesses about the case.
All of the 19 defendants in the case who were indicted last week, including Trump, are expected to turn themselves in this week ahead of a Friday deadline set by Willis, following last week’s sweeping indictment over Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Eastman plans to surrender to Fulton County authorities on Wednesday, according to a new filing Monday - the first confirmation outside of Trump of a date on which one of his 18 co-defendants will turn themselves in for their arrest and processing.
The conservative attorney has been facing disciplinary proceedings in the State Bar of California, in which he could lose his license to practice law in the state. Hearings were set for multiple days this week, but a judge of the State Bar Court of California said on Monday night that Eastman would not be before her on Tuesday and Wednesday because of his forthcoming surrender.
“Based on the recent email exchanges between and with the parties, the court is willing to make certain changes in this week’s trial schedule in order to accommodate Dr. Eastman’s surrender in Fulton County, Georgia, which the court understands will take place on Wednesday, August 23rd,” Judge Yvette Roland wrote in a court order.
In a typical case in Fulton County when police make an arrest, the arrestee is booked into jail and must appear before a magistrate judge within 72 hours. That most likely won’t be the case for the defendants in this racketeering case. Because they have already been indicted and are expected to negotiate the terms of release and bond before surrendering at the jail, they most likely won’t have an initial court appearance, attorneys told CNN.
Law enforcement presence remains at an elevated level at the Fulton County court complex. Dozens of law enforcement vehicles are parked, lining the two block radius around the court as well as the government center where the 19 defendants are expected to negotiate the terms of release and bond with the district attorney’s office.
Law enforcement officers from the Fulton County sheriff’s office have been taking the lead in security outside the buildings, but members from other agencies and departments - like the US Marshals Service, who are responsible for courthouse security, as well as Atlanta police - also have been seen patrolling the area and staged outside of public entrances.
According to a news release from the sheriff’s office on Monday, the barricades around the Fulton County courthouse will remain in place until Saturday. The deadline for the defendants to turn themselves in is Friday at 12 p.m. ET.
Source: CNN