The Fulton County Jail is shown April 11, 2023, in Atlanta. Former President Donald Trump says he will surrender to authorities in Georgia on Thursday, Aug 24, to face charges in the case accusing him of illegally scheming to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state. (AP Photo/Kate Brumback). Inset: FILE – Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks as he visits the Iowa State Fair, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
Donald Trump is expected to surrender Thursday on racketeering and election interference charges to a notoriously troubled and dangerous Georgia jail — although he isn’t expected to be behind bars for very long, as his lawyers have already negotiated terms of release and a $200,000 bond.
Trump, along with 18 alleged co-conspirators, is charged in a sweeping indictment issued in Aug. 14 in Fulton County. According to District Attorney Fani Willis, the former president engaged in a plot to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election in the Peach State and, in doing so, violated the state’s RICO (Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) laws. He’s also accused of forgery, false statements, conspiracy to influence an election, perjury, and influencing witnesses. Members of Trump’s so-called “elite strike force” were also named in the indictment.
He was given until Friday, Aug. 25, to surrender for the booking process. As of Wednesday, a handful of co-defendants — including Rudy Giuliani, “coup memo” author John Eastman, attorneys Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis, and ex-Georgia GOP chairman David Shafer — have already submitted to the Fulton County sheriff for processing.
Weeks before Trump was indicted, Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat said that the former president wouldn’t receive special treatment if and when he showed up for booking.
“Unless somebody tells me differently, we are following our normal practices, and so it doesn’t matter your status, we’ll have a mugshot ready for you,” Labat said, according to local ABC affiliate WSB.
Because he has already negotiated the terms of his release, Trump is not likely to witness firsthand the reportedly dangerous and troubling conditions of the jail. As Law&Crime previously reported, jail detainee Lashawn Thompson, who suffered from schizophrenia, was found on the floor unresponsive and slumped over the toilet in a cell in the psychiatric ward of the Fulton County Jail on Sept. 13, 2022, according to an autopsy. He was covered with feces and body lice, with an “innumerable number of insects” on his head hair, face, nose, mouth, chest, pubic area, arms, and legs, the independent autopsy report said.
Thompson’s death sparked widespread firings at the jail, as well as state and federal investigations.
Earlier this year, jail officials discovered that one inmate stabbed another after tunneling through a shower wall and using shanks made from parts of the dilapidated building.
Local lawyers tell local NBC affiliate WXIA that the booking process at the jail can take up to 12 hours. During that time, a suspect’s photo and fingerprints will be taken and they will fill out a medical questionnaire. They also normally answer questions about their ties to the local community as a way of helping determine bond — although in this case, the Trump defendants have negotiated bond and release conditions ahead of booking.
“It’s the discretion of the prosecution what kind of deals you can make,” attorney Joshua Shiffer told the station.
Meanwhile, an online betting service is apparently allowing Trump watchers to bet on the former president’s weight, according to a Daily Beast report.
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