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Fulton County, Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis in her Fulton County Justice Center tower office in Atlanta, Georgia on Tuesday, September 20, 2022.
David Walter Banks | The Washington Post | Getty Images
The Georgia prosecutor leading an investigation into election interference by former President Donald Trump and his allies said Monday she would announce charging decisions in the matter this summer.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said she plans to make her announcement during the Fulton County Superior Court’s fourth term, which begins July 11 and ends September 1.
The Atlanta area prosecutor has conducted a criminal investigation into alleged interference in Georgia’s 2020 election for the past two years. The investigation began weeks after Trump urged Georgia officials to “find” enough votes for him to overturn President Joe Biden’s victory in the state.
Willis revealed the timing of his announcement warning local law enforcement of “the need for increased security and preparedness in the coming months due to this pending announcement.”
“Open source intelligence has indicated that the announcement of the rulings in this case could provoke a significant public reaction,” Willis said in a letter Monday to Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat, obtained by NBC News.
“We have seen in recent years that some may step out of public expressions of opinion protected by the First Amendment to engage in acts of violence that will endanger the safety of our community. As leaders, it is our responsibility to prepare,” Willis wrote.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported for the first time Letter from Willis to Labat.
Trump, who left the White House in 2021 and is now leading the 2024 Republican presidential primary, surrendered to law enforcement in New York earlier this month as part of a separate criminal investigation by the bureau. of the Manhattan District Attorney.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to dozens of counts of falsifying business documents in the case, which centers on multiple silent money payments made in 2016 to two women who alleged they had affairs with Trump for years over. early.
Law enforcement officials in Georgia were watching how Trump’s Manhattan arraignment is going, a source familiar with the Fulton County investigation previously told NBC.
Willis said in January that charging decisions in his investigation were “imminent.” A special grand jury hearing evidence in the investigation would have recommended charges against several people. Portions of the grand jury’s final report, released in February, showed the panel believed one or more witnesses may have lied under oath.
Trump also faces two federal criminal investigations overseen by Special Counsel Jack Smith.