Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump reacts as he holds a campaign rally in Erie, Pennsylvania, U.S., July 29, 2023. REUTERS/Lindsay DeDario/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights
WASHINGTON, Sept 14 (Reuters) – Donald Trump’s Georgia trial on charges of trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat won’t begin in October, a judge said on Thursday in a ruling that will allow the former U.S. president to be tried after two of his former attorneys.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee cited logistical concerns and the array of unsettled legal issues in separating the trial of attorneys Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell from Trump and the other 16 co-defendants.
A trial date for Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has not yet been set, and the judge indicated the case may have to be split up further.
McAfee previously voiced skepticism that all 19 defendants could be tried together.
Trump was charged in August in an indictment alleging he and his co-defendants conspired to pressure Georgia election officials to reverse his loss to Democratic President Joe Biden.
Trump and the other defendants have pleaded not guilty.
Powell and Chesebro, two attorneys accused of aiding Trump’s efforts to reverse his election defeat, previously asked for a speedy trial, which is scheduled to begin October 23. Trump and several other defendants said that timeline would not give them enough time to prepare a defense.
Reporting by Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Scott Malone and Alistair Bell
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