Judge enters courtroompublished at 01:48 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
Madeline Halpert
Reporting from court
Judge Robert McBurney has just walked into the courtroom and has taken his seat.
Two sheriffs are standing on either side of him.
Summary
Prosecutors in the US state of Georgia have charged Donald Trump and 18 others with attempting to overturn his 2020 election loss there
The former president is facing 13 new charges, which include racketeering and election meddling
An investigation was sparked in part by a leaked phone call in which the Trump asked Georgia's top election official to "find 11,780 votes"
Trump lost the state of Georgia to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election
This is his fourth criminal indictment; he faces 78 charges from the three other cases - for allegations over election interference, hush money paid to a porn star, and hoarding classified documents
Trump has denied any wrongdoing in all of his criminal cases; calling the latest charges a "witch hunt" and suggesting they were politically motivated
He hopes to win the US presidency again next year, and is currently the frontrunner for the Republican Party's nomination
Judge enters courtroompublished at 01:48 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
Election official wraps up several hours of testimonypublished at 01:45 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
A top Georgia election official who furiously rebuked Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans over their false claims about the 2020 election has given testimony to the grand jury.
Gabe Sterling, the chief operating officer for Georgia's secretary of state, had spoken with the jury for several hours, NBC News reports.
Sterling served as voting implementation manager in 2020.
That December, he directly called out the then-president in front of cameras, alleging that the harassment and threats faced by election workers had "gone too far" and could get somebody killed.
Media caption, Gabriel Sterling calls out President Trump over supporters' threats
Clerk is 'disappointed' with mysterious documentpublished at 01:21 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
Che Alexander, the court clerk, did not respond to reporters' questions about the mysterious document that reportedly showed up on the court's website earlier today with indictments against Trump.
At the time it was posted, the grand jury hadn't even voted on indicting Trump. It was quickly taken down with the district attorney's office calling it "fictitious".
"I don't know what else to say," Alexander said. "I haven't seen an indictment."
She said she was "disappointed" in what happened.
When a reporter asked if a hack was to blame, she refused to engage and said she would not answer more questions about the document.
Former Lt. Gov: 'This is a pivot point'published at 00:59 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
Image source, ReutersEarlier, former Georgia lieutenant governor Geoff Duncan left the courthouse after testifying before the grand jury. And he had strong words for his fellow Republicans.
Duncan told reporters he could not speak to the specifics of his testimony, but said "it's important to tell the truth".
Duncan later elaborated to the Atlanta Journal Constitution that this was "a pivot point for this country to do something more than just stew on the 2020 election cycle".
"We're either gonna as Republicans, take our medicine and realise the election wasn't rigged, Donald Trump was the worst candidate ever in the history of the party [... ] and now we're going to have to pivot from here.
"We wanna win an election in 2024, it's gonna have to be somebody else than Donald Trump if we do it."
Duncan had a front row seat to Trump's efforts to impact the Georgia election results in 2020 and he harshly criticised the former president and his allies for their actions.
Earlier today, Trump had warned in a Truth Social post that Duncan should not testify.
Court clerk says she is prepared to work all nightpublished at 00:38 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
Kayla Epstein
Reporting from courtAnother person who's waiting for this indictment to land: the clerk.
Like the many reporters peppering her with questions all day, Che Alexander is waiting at the Fulton County courthouse for a potential indictment.
She just came out and gave reporters an energetic briefing about how the procedure would play out.
Long story short: after the grand jury votes, their decision is delivered to the judge, and eventually she has to take that indictment and process it.
To drive the point home, she even acted out the process - stepping behind the clerk's window and having an officer with the sheriff's office ring the bell.
It could take her hours, but she told reporters she wasn't going anywhere.
"I'm not gonna leave until it's done," she said.
Asked how she was holding up, she said "I'm built for this. I see this all day".
WATCH: Sarah Smith gives update outside courtpublished at 00:27 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
Media caption, Georgia grand jury to decide on Trump election charges
BBC News North America Editor Sarah Smith is outside the courthouse, where the Georgia grand jury is still listening to witness testimony.
Smith says there was a flurry of excitement earlier when it looked like charges had appeared on the court website, but it turned out to be "fake news".
Click the play button in the video above for more details on a strange day in Atlanta.
Another hour, judge sayspublished at 00:15 British Summer Time 15 August 2023
Madeline Halpert
Reporting from courtJudge Robert McBurney has just come in to give us another update.
"I've been told to be here for another hour," he tells us.
He also gave hungry reporters some Lays chips meant for jurors.
The grand jury is still hearing from witnessespublished at 23:53 British Summer Time 14 August 2023
Madeline Halpert
Reporting from courtOur wait continues as the grand jury is still hearing from witnesses.
Atlanta-area journalist George Chidi, who is supposed to testify today, wrote in a post on social media a half hour ago that he had yet to appear before the grand jury.
Former Republican Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan has just finished his testimony and left the courthouse, briefly speaking with reporters.
But Chidi said he is still waiting with other witnesses outside the room.
"I have a ticket to see Oppenheimer tonight. I thought I'd be safe at a 11 p.m. showing. Fingers crossed," he said.
What has Trump said about the Georgia investigation?published at 23:33 British Summer Time 14 August 2023
Image source, Getty ImagesDonald Trump has described the investigation - as he has many others against him - as a "political witch hunt".
The former president has also attacked the legal official leading the inquiry - the chief prosecutor of Fulton County, Fani Willis - as a "young, ambitious, Radical Left Democrat".
Trump has also described his phone call, where he asked Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to find him more votes, as “perfect”.
What is the Georgia investigation about?published at 23:05 British Summer Time 14 August 2023
Former US President Donald Trump is accused of trying to overturn the 2020 election result in the state of Georgia, where he lost to Joe Biden by 11,779 votes.
A 26-member grand jury investigation was sparked by the infamous phone call between Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Here’s what Trump and his allies are accused of:
- The phone call: On 2 January, 2021, the then-president asked Raffensperger “to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have"
- Pressuring lawmakers: Trump's associates - most notably, his lawyer Rudy Giuliani - spread false claims of voter fraud and other conspiracy theories in Georgia. Trump’s team told lawmakers they had the power to decertify the state's legitimate electoral college results
- A fake elector scheme: The former president's allies allegedly co-ordinated a scheme to have fake members of the Electoral College - the system that technically elects a US president - cast their votes for Trump in Georgia, rather than Biden, who won the state
- Election data breach: Trump campaign lawyers reportedly worked with a data firm to copy sensitive data from election systems in Coffee County, Georgia
Will we see a vote soon?published at 23:01 British Summer Time 14 August 2023
Kayla Epstein
Reporting from courtLike Madeline Halpert, I'm also staked out in an odd corner of the Fulton County courthouse, waiting for any news from the grand jury.
A few reporters are hanging out in a clerk's office, where official documents are filed, in case some important paperwork arrives. So far, there's a great deal of pacing but very little news for us to report.
However, that could change suddenly if the grand jury holds a vote.
Stay tuned...
Waiting for the judgepublished at 22:56 British Summer Time 14 August 2023
Madeline Halpert
Reporting from court
We’ve been waiting at the courthouse in Atlanta for news of charges against Trump all day.
I’m sitting in an eighth-floor court room packed with several rows of reporters.This is where Fulton County Judge Robert McBurney would receive a possible indictment from the grand jury.
The paperwork would then be taken down to the fifth floor, where it could take several hours to process.
McBurney has come in to speak with reporters on several occasions today, telling us most recently we’ll just “have to wait and see” whether the indictment is returned tonight.
Welcomepublished at 22:54 British Summer Time 14 August 2023
Brandon Livesay
Live reporterHello and welcome to our live coverage, as a grand jury in Georgia decides if there is enough evidence to charge former US President Donald Trump over trying to overturn the state's election result.
The investigation began after Trump made a now-infamous phone call to Georgia's top election official and asked him to "find 11,780 votes".
Trump has already been hit with three indictments this year, and this grand jury will soon decide if he will face a fourth.
Our reporters Kayla Epstein and Madeline Halpert are at the Fulton County courthouse and will be bringing us the latest news as it happens.
Stay with us.