Full indictment in fake electors case released by Arizona attorney general
The Arizona Attorney General's Office on Monday released an unredacted version of the indictment charging 11 Arizona Republicans and seven aides to Donald Trump with crimes stemming from a plan to keep him in the White House by falsely certifying he won the state in 2020.
The move comes after Rudy Giuliani, a Trump lawyer and former mayor of New York City, was served a notice of the charges against him Friday after weeks of evading — and taunting — prosecutors. The remaining defendants had already been served.
A grand jury in Maricopa County indicted the 18 people in April. But when the indictment was first released, the names of Trump's seven allies were redacted because they had not yet been served their notice of charges. That changed as weeks passed.
Giuliani proved difficult for authorities to reach. Agents for the Attorney General's Office spent two days in New York City trying to serve him, tried calling multiple phone numbers and sent the summons via certified mail with no success.
But Giuliani's recent nightly live video streams from his Florida residence alerted Arizona officials to his whereabouts. On Friday night, he was served in Florida as he left an early birthday party hosted by Caroline Wren, a Republican consultant and adviser to Arizona U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake. Giuliani turns 80 later this month.
The 18 defendants, according to the 58-page indictment, are accused of engaging in a conspiracy to prevent "the lawful transfer of the presidency of the United States, keeping Donald J. Trump in office against the will of the Arizona voters, and depriving Arizona voters of their right to vote and have their votes counted."
In 2020, Arizona voters narrowly favored Joe Biden.
The defendants face multiple felony counts, including conspiracy, forgery, and fraud. If convicted, the crimes could carry prison time, though state law allows for less severe penalties, including probation, depending on the defendant's circumstances, like past criminal history.
On Friday morning, former Trump attorney John Eastman was the first defendant to appear in a Maricopa County courtroom. He entered a plea of not guilty to his charges. After the hearing, he said he would fight the case against him at trial.
Most of the other defendants were expected to appear in court or be virtually arraigned Tuesday. Some have delayed their appearances to June.
The Republic's Stacey Barchenger contributed to this article.
Elena Santa Cruz is a justice reporter for The Republic. Reach her at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: AZ attorney general releases full indictment in fake electors case