A judge from Fulton County, Georgia, has denied Gov. Brian Kemp’s motion to quash a grand jury subpoena for testimony in a case investigating circumstances relating to the 2020 election.
On Jan. 24 this year, Judge Robert McBurney, the county’s superior court judge, approved a petition from Fani Willis, Fulton County district attorney, to convene a grand jury to investigate “the facts and circumstances relating directly or indirectly to possible attempts to disrupt the lawful administration of the 2020 elections in the state of Georgia,” according to the court document.
The 23-person jury was convened to determine whether former President Donald Trump and his allies broke the law in an effort to overturn the results of Georgia’s presidential election in Trump’s favor, the Washington Examiner previously reported.
The jury, which convened on May 2, subpoenaed Kemp to learn whether criminal conduct had occurred during alleged attempts to interfere with the election.
“According to both the pleadings from and the lawyers for the Governor and District Attorney, this subpoena came only after weeks of tortured and torturous negotiations over obtaining an interview with the Governor,” read the document, referring to Kemp. “Both sides share responsibility for the torture and tortuousness.”
Kemp’s lawyers filed a motion to quash — render void — his testimony on Aug. 25, invoking sovereign immunity, and stated the court “lacked jurisdiction to issue, enforce, or even consider a subpoena.” Kemp was originally slated to appear before the grand jury on July 25.
GOV. KEMP SEEKS TO DELAY TESTIMONY IN GEORGIA ELECTION PROBE
Georgia law rules that one cannot sue the state unless it provides a specific waiver or legislation allowing them to do so — granting individuals like the governor “sovereign immunity,” Kemp’s attorneys argued.
In response, Willis’s team argued that the motion to quash has no grounds because there is no lawsuit being filed against Kemp and sovereign immunity does not apply to criminal proceedings.
After the court held a public hearing to debate the issue, McBurney ultimately denied the request on Monday after analyzing the intent of the court and Willis’s job as an elected official to investigate criminal charges.
However, Kemp’s appearance in court won’t take place until “some date soon after the 8 November 2022 general election,” in which he is facing Democrat Stacey Abrams.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“The Governor is in the midst of a re-election campaign and this criminal grand jury investigation should not be used by the District Attorney, the Governor’s opponent, or the Governor himself to influence the outcome of that election,” the document stated.
