Fani Willis, Fulton County, Georgia’s district attorney, indicated that she intends to pursue criminal charges against former President Donald Trump for illegally attempting to influence the outcome of the 2020 election. (Courtesy of Fulton County)
In a saga that seems to be spiraling into a legal quagmire, former President Donald Trump is once again teetering on the precipice of potential criminal charges as Atlanta-area prosecutor Fani Willis is set to present her case before a grand jury this week.
Several witnesses already have been called to testify in Willis’ investigation into Trump’s alleged attempt to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia.
And a conclusion seems only days away.
Various reports suggest that Willis’ penchant for employing the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) will play out against Trump.
In 1970, Congress enacted the RICO statute which broadened the scope of prospective prosecutions against participants in organized crime.
Under RICO, prosecutors can freeze the assets of suspects until the case’s outcome.
If the RICO charge is proven, it could lead to a maximum of 20 years in prison for each racketeering count.
A guilty defendant also loses all assets related to racketeering, including those connected to lawful businesses.
Additionally, a judge could impose financial penalties.
In 2022, Willis extolled RICO as a tool to convey the “whole story,” appreciating the intelligence and discernment of jurors who yearn for accurate judgments.
“The racketeering statute does not look simply at a single crime, it tries to look at the big picture of view,” Morgan Cloud, a law professor at Emory University, told CBS News.
To prove a RICO case, prosecutors must convince a jury that at least two of the racketeering activities are related in terms of method, purpose, or victims.
Cloud believes that the main goal of Trump was to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
“It has to be not just one separate isolated event but a series of interrelated actions,” Cloud told the outlet.
To convict Trump, Willis must prove that he actively played a leading role, according to law professor Anthony Michael Kreis from Georgia State University.
Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg said that if Trump were charged under RICO, he would have co-defendants, increasing the risk of someone turning against him.
“The Georgia RICO law is tougher than federal law in some ways, such as a five-year mandatory minimum prison sentence. That’s the kind of thing that will adjust some attitudes,” Aronberg told Newsweek.
Willis is about to share her findings.