Eastman has been involved in at least two cases of grand jury interest.
He was reportedly a key architect of the plan to pressure Vice President Mike Pence into refusing to count official Democratic voters in Georgia and half a dozen other disputed swing states on January 6. 2021. Instead, Pence would recognize a set of Trumps. voters.
To that end, 16 Georgia Republicans signed documents at the state Capitol in December 2020 claiming to be the state’s duly elected presidential voters.
Pence dismissed the idea, but a federal judge in March argued that “it is more likely than not that President Trump and Dr. Eastman dishonestly conspired to obstruct the joint session of Congress on January 6, 2021. “.
Eastman also testified at a public hearing in December 2020 of interest to the grand jury. During his remarks, Eastman argued that there was “more than enough” evidence of fraud and improper conduct to warrant Georgia lawmakers choosing an alternative list of presidential voters.
“I don’t think it’s just your authority to do that,” Eastman said, “but, quite frankly, I think you have a duty to do it to protect the integrity of the election here in Georgia.”
In its subpoena seeking Eastman’s testimony, the grand jury said there is evidence that Eastman’s appearance at the hearing and the work on the bogus voter scheme were “part of a coordinated, multi-party plan.” States by the Trump campaign to influence the results of the November 2020 campaign elections in Georgia and elsewhere.
Georgia’s 16 fake voters were sent “target” letters earlier this summer alerting them that they could be charged, with Giuliani. (The office of the Fulton DA was later forbidden to investigate one of those voters, State Senator Burt Jones, due to a political conflict of interest.)
In an email to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Silverglate said that, based on his knowledge, Eastman “was not made aware that he was the target” of the investigation.
“I do not believe that Mr. Eastman will be named a target at any time because the evidence is clear that he committed no crime,” he said. “I challenge any journalist to suggest what crimes he may have committed.”
His comments came shortly after the New York Times cited telling him that Eastman is “probably” a target, but not legitimate in his eyes.
A spokesperson for the Fulton DA’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Burnham and Silverglate, in their written statement, warned that the district attorney’s office “has embarked on an unprecedented course of criminalizing controversial or disadvantaged legal theories, perhaps in hopes that the federal government will follow suit. example”.
“The criminalization of unpopular legal theories is contrary to all American traditions and would have ended the careers of John Adams, Ruth Ginsburg, Thurgood Marshall and many other now famous American lawyers,” they wrote.
Silverglate said he viewed Eastman’s continued testimony to Fulton “as part of a much larger witch hunt of sorts.”
“In my view, he engaged in protected political activity as well as speech, and yet he is being prosecuted as if he were a mass murderer,” he told the AJC. “I hope my fellow Liberals will agree with me, although I suspect that, unfortunately, many will not.”
On Tuesday, Kenneth Chesebro, a Trump campaign attorney from New York, appeared before the special purpose grand jury, according to court documents.
Fulton prosecutors say Chesebro worked with Georgia Republican Party leadership to coordinate the list of alternate voters. Prosecutors also claim that Chesebro worked directly with Giuliani to execute the plan.
Chesebro’s attorney, prominent white-collar defense attorney Scott Grubman, declined to discuss his client’s testimony. But he criticized the ongoing investigation involving Trump’s legal team.
“Lawyers who take on unpopular clients and provide legal advice should not be investigated,” Grubman said. “It’s a slippery and extremely dangerous slope.”
Writer Bill Rankin contributed to this article.