A Georgia judge has ordered the partial release of a Fulton County grand jury report on efforts by former president Donald Trump and his allies to overturn his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden in the Peach State.
The members of the special purpose grand jury had asked the Fulton County Superior Court to allow the release of their full work product, which was commissioned at the request of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
But Judge Robert McBurney on Monday ordered that parts of the report remain sealed, including a list of individuals against whom the special purpose grand jury recommended indictments.
“Having reviewed the final report, the undersigned concludes that the special purpose grand jury did not exceed the scope of its prescribed mission. Indeed, it provided the District Attorney with exactly what she requested: a roster of who should (or should not) be indicted, and for what, in relation to the conduct (and aftermath) of the 2020 general election in Georgia,” he wrote, adding that on the surface, the law would require the report be published in its complete form.
Yet the judge said there are compelling reasons to keep parts of the report from the public at this time, writing: “But, as with many things in the law, it is not that simple”.
He added that due process requires that parts of the report detailing the names of potential targets for indictment remain secret for the time being, as well as portions identifying people named in the report who didn’t get to appear before the grand jury. But he stressed that those sections of the report won’t be kept secret forever.
“The consequence of these due process deficiencies is not that the special purpose grand jury's final report is forever suppressed or that its recommendations for or against indictment are in any way flawed or suspect. Rather, the consequence is that those recommendations are for the District Attorney's eyes only - for now,” he said.
Judge McBurney also noted that “three parts” of the report are “ripe for publication,” including the “introduction and conclusion to the final report” and a section “in which the special purpose grand jury discusses its concern that some witnesses may have lied under oath during their testimony to the grand jury”.
“Because the grand jury does not identify those witnesses, that conclusion may be publicly disclosed at this time, he said.
Those parts of the report will be made public on 16 February.
