Another Narrative Collapses:
Arizona grand jurors discussed indicting Trump, but prosecutors urged them not to
The grand jury ultimately indicted 18 Trump allies, including Mark Meadows and Rudy Giuliani, over efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/08/06/trump-arizona-indictment-prosecutors/By Yvonne Wingett Sanchez
August 6, 2024 at 6:15 p.m. EDT
PHOENIX — An Arizona grand jury that indicted 18 Donald Trump allies this spring for their role in efforts to overturn the 2020 election had expressed interest in possible charges against the former president, according to a legal motion filed this week by state prosecutors.
It is unclear how many of the jurors were in favor of indicting the former president, who by then had been federally charged for his attempts to subvert Joe Biden’s win in a case brought by special counsel Jack Smith. The interest prompted the Arizona case’s lead prosecutor to give a PowerPoint presentation and request that jurors not indict Trump, according to the motion.
Nicholas Klingerman, assistant attorney general for the Arizona attorney general’s criminal division, cited a rule about prosecuting someone for the same crime twice as well as a lack of evidence.
“That is why I have not recommended that in the draft indictment, despite clear indications from you all that there’s an interest in pursuing a charge against him,” Klingerman told the jurors.
The court document offers a rare glimpse into Arizona grand jury proceedings, which are typically kept secret. The grand jury ultimately indicted Trump advisers such as former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and attorneys Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, John Eastman and Christina Bobb. Also charged were the 11 Arizona Republicans who signed paperwork on Dec. 14, 2020, that falsely described Trump as the rightful winner.
