ATLANTA — Sidney Powell, an attorney who assisted former President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty Thursday to charges that she attempted to criminally interfere in Georgia's 2020 election.
Powell pleaded guilty to six misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with performance of election duties. Powell, alongside Trump, was one of 19 people charged with crimes tied to the election.
As part of the deal reached with prosecutors, Powell received six years of probation and a $6,000 fine. Powell will also be required to turn over documents and provide truthful testimony in criminal cases against her former co-defendants.
Powell must also pay $2,700 in restitution to the state of Georgia and write an apology letter to Georgia citizens.
She was indicted for her alleged role in the election data breach in Coffee County, Georgia, and the national effort by Trump and his allies to overturn the election.
Powell is the second person in the election racketeering case to plead guilty. Atlanta-area bail bondsman Scott Hall pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with performance of election duties. Hall was also involved in the Coffee County breach.
The Coffee County data breach and White House meeting
Prosecutors alleged that Powell played a key role in the copying of sensitive election software and data that took place on Jan. 7, 2021 in Coffee County.
Four people were criminally charged for their alleged roles in the breach: Powell; Hall; former Coffee County election supervisor Misty Hampton and former Coffee County Republican Party chair Cathy Latham.
Powell wasn't present in the election office. However, the indictment alleges that the Georgia work was done under a contract between Powell and Atlanta-based data forensics firm SullivanStrickler. The contract was signed Dec. 6, 2020 for the "performance of computer forensic collections and analytics on Dominion Voting Systems in Michigan and elsewhere."
Court documents obtained by 11Alive show SullivanStirickler Chief Operating Officer Paul Maggio emailed Powell on the morning of the breach and attached a roughly $26,000 invoice for the work. Maggio alleged the work was done at the request of former NSA employee Jim Penrose.
"Per Jim Penrose's request, we are on our way to Coffee County Georgia to collect what we can from the Election / Voting machines and systems," a portion of Maggio's email reads. "As per our existing agreement, I am attaching the invoice for our initial retainer. Please let me know if there are any questions or concerns."
The SullivanStrickler team spent seven hours inside the election office working. Hall, Hampton and Latham were present at the election office during the breach.
Powell, Hall, Hampton and Latham were charged with the following crimes tied to Coffee County:
- Two counts of conspiracy to commit election fraud
- Conspiracy to commit computer theft
- Conspiracy to commit computer trespass
- Conspiracy to commit computer invasion of privacy
- Conspiracy to defraud the state
The group also faced one count of violating Georgia's RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act. Latham is facing additional charges for her role in the Trump elector plot. Latham was one of 16 Republicans who signed Electoral College documents falsely claiming that Trump won the 2020 election.
The Fulton County District Attorney's Office also alleges that Powell played a role in the national plot to overturn Joe Biden's 2020 presidential victory.
Powell attended a Dec. 18, 2020 White House meeting with Trump, attorney Rudy Giuliani, and others. During this meeting, prosecutors allege that they discussed "certain strategies and theories intended to influence the outcome of the November 3, 2020, presidential election." Some of the plans included seizing voting equipment and appointing Powell as special counsel with "broad authority" to investigate allegations of voter fraud in Georgia and other states, the indictment alleges.
What's next?
Powell's plea comes one day before jury selection in the Fulton County trial against her and Trump attorney Kenneth Chesebro was set to begin.
Scott Grubman, Chesebro's attorney, told 11Alive he had no comment on Powell's deal Thursday.
Roughly 450 potential jurors will complete the jury questionnaires under oath Friday at the county courthouse. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee described the process during a court hearing last month.
Following introductions, the indictment will be summarized for the potential jurors in a paragraph or two. Preliminary remarks will be made, and the questionnaires will be passed out.
"For the next couple of hours, we can sit there and watch everyone fill them out," McAfee said. "That'll be it for the day."
The questionnaires would then be scanned in for review. On Monday, prosecutors and Chesebro's attorneys will begin questioning potential jurors.
The individual questioning is subject to change. The plan is to begin at 9 a.m. with a panel of 14 potential jurors who will be questioned individually.
For each panel, the judge will determine if there are hardships that would prevent a juror from serving. Each party will have one hour to question the panel. If time permits, two panels would be done each day.
Another 450 potential jurors will fill out questionnaires on Oct. 27.
McAfee previously said he hopes to have a jury sat and sworn in by Nov. 3 to meet Chesebro's demand for a speedy trial under state law.
A trial date for Trump and the remaining codefendants has not been set.
In a statement to 11Alive, Trump attorney Steve Sadow said Powell's plea would be beneficial to the former president's case.
"Assuming truthful testimony in the Fulton County case, it will be favorable to my overall defense strategy," Sadow said.
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
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