(NEW YORK) — A Queens, New York, man was convicted last week on multiple counts of attempted murder for attacking peaceful Black Lives Matter demonstrators in 2020, according to prosecutors.
Frank Cavalluzzi, 57, was found guilty on nine counts of attempted murder in the second degree, nine counts of attempted assault in the first degree, seven counts of menacing in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree and reckless driving, prosecutors said on Monday.
His conviction comes after a two-week trial where prosecutors said Cavalluzzi attempted to kill Black Lives Matter activists in June 2020, over a week after George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis officer.
Prosecutors said that Cavalluzzi went after demonstrators while wearing gloves adorned with jagged blades and then tried to run them over driving his vehicle on the sidewalk, the Queens District Attorney Office said.
“A dangerous man is going to jail. It’s a good day for New York and the First Amendment,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement.
Cavalluzzi faces up to 25 years in prison for each count of attempted murder, prosecutors said. He will be sentenced on Oct. 13.
Prosecutors said on the afternoon of June 2, 2020, a group of demonstrators were hanging up signs in support of the Black Lives Matter movement when Cavalluzzi noticed the group while driving, pulled over his SUV across the street and started to curse and scream racial slurs at the group.
“You are in the wrong neighborhood,” Cavalluzzi reportedly said, according to prosecutors.
Cavalluzzi allegedly made a U-turn, left his vehicle while wearing a leather glove with four serrated blades attached to his arm and chased several members of the group while waving the glove and yelling at them, before getting back into his SUV, screaming, “I will kill you” to the demonstrators and attempted to run them over, prosecutors said.
“The world will see this case through a prism of politics, but I see it involving a single man with mental health challenges struggling to understand the evolving city where we live. It’s a sad situation,” Cavalluzzi’s attorney Michael Horn told ABC News in a statement.
Horn said that they are going to appeal the decision.
(ATLANTA) — A Fulton County Superior Court judge has set bond for more than half of the 19 defendants charged in District Attorney Fani Willis’ election interference case.
Judge Scott McAfee on Tuesday set former Trump attorney Jenna Ellis’ bail at $100,000, a day after he set former President Donald Trump’s bond at $200,000.
Later Tuesday he set bond for Stephen Lee, a pastor, at $75,000, and for Georgia lawyer Robert Cheeley at $50,000.
Ellis is accused of making false statements to overturn the 2020 election and of soliciting public officials to unlawfully appoint presidential electors. She, Trump and 17 others were charged last week in a sweeping racketeering indictment for alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia. The former president says his actions were not illegal and that the investigation is politically motivated.
Ellis is facing two counts, including one count of solicitation of violation of oath by public officer. Following her indictment last week, she responded on social media, saying, “The Democrats and the Fulton County DA are criminalizing the practice of law. I am resolved to trust the Lord.”
According to investigators, Cheeley presented video clips to legislators of election workers at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta and alleged that the workers were counting votes twice or sometimes three times.
Prosecutors say Lee worked with others to try to pressure Georgia election worker Ruby Freeman and her daughter after Trump and his allies falsely accused them of pulling fraudulent ballots from a suitcase during the vote count.
McAfee also Tuesday set bail of $75,000 for former Coffee County GOP chair Cathy Latham, and $50,000 for former Trump campaign official Michael Roman.
Latham is one of 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a certificate falsely stating that Trump had won the state, while Roman served as director of Election Day operations for Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign and was involved in the plan to organize the so-called “fake electors” in battleground states.
Those defendants for whom bail has been set have begun turning themselves in for processing at the Fulton County Jail.
All have been been given until Friday at noon to surrender. The former president said Monday evening on his social media platform that he intends to surrender in Georgia on Thursday.
In addition to Trump, Judge McAfee set bond Monday for attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro at $100,000, for Ray Smith III at $50,000, and for Scott Hall at $10,000.
All the defendants’ bond agreements include a provision that they “shall perform no act to intimidate any person known to him or her to be a codefendant or witness in this case or to otherwise obstruct the administration of justice.”
Trump’s bond agreement says that includes “no direct or indirect threat” against codefendants or witnesses.
“The above shall include, but are not limited to, posts on social media or reposts of posts made by another individual on social media,” his agreement says.
All defendants are also prohibited from communicating about the facts of the case with codefendants, except through counsel.
Earlier Tuesday, McAfee signed off on a $75,000 bond for David Shafer and a $10,000 bond for Shawn Still. A current Georgia state senator, Still faces seven counts, including two counts of forgery in the first degree.
According to indictment, Still, who was elected to the state senate in January, was one of 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a certificate falsely stating that Trump won the state and declaring themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors.
“The evidence at trial will show that Sen. Still is innocent as the day is long,” his attorney said in a statement to ABC News. “We look forward to our day in court to clear his good name.”
Shafer, a former Georgia GOP, is charged with eight counts, including three counts of false statements and writings. He was one of the so-called “false electors,” and reserved the room where fake electors met at the Georgia State Capitol on Dec. 14, 2020, according to the indictment.
“Listen. Tell them to go straight to room 2016 to avoid drawing attention to what we are doing,” he allegedly wrote in a text regarding the meeting, according to the indictment.
Attorneys for Shafer said in a statement to ABC News that he is “totally innocent of the charges” in Fulton County and that his conduct regarding the 2020 election was “lawful.”
Shafer’s attorney, Craig Gillen, on his way out of the building after negotiating with the DA Tuesday told ABC News that everything “went fine.”
An attorney for Cheseboro said on his way out of the district attorney’s office Monday that the bond negotiation process was a “pretty good process” and that he would “look forward to moving forward.”
“It was very straightforward, we had a meeting with the DA’s office, worked out the negotiated deal, signed the paperwork, and honestly it took longer to get copies than it did to negotiate,” the attorney, Scott Grubman, said.
Grubman said Cheseboro would surrender for processing at the Fulton Country Jail before the Friday deadline.
Asked if he was concerned about the conditions at the jail, where seven inmates have died this year, Grubman said, “Just like any jail, there’s clearly issues in the Fulton Rice Street Jail.”
“But I think its going to hopefully be as soon as possible, and we appreciate their cooperation,” Grubman said, praising the sheriff’s team.
As ABC News has previously reported, after an indictment has been handed down in Georgia, bond and conditions of release are typically worked out prior to any surrender. The bond can be paid through cash, a commercial surety, or a court program that requires a payment of 10% of the bond amount.
Trump is charged with 13 counts, including three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, related in part to the Jan. 2, 2021, phone call he made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Trump’s campaign called the indictment “un-American and wrong.” The former president contends his actions were not illegal and that the investigation is politically motivated.
Eastman is charged with nine counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. The indictment names him as among those allegedly involved in a scheme to solicit public officers to unlawfully appoint Georgia presidential electors.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Eastman’s attorney said, “The indictment in Georgia versus Donald Trump and 18 others sets out activity that is political, but not criminal.”
Chesebro faces seven counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. According to the indictment, he allegedly acted “in furtherance of the conspiracy” by, among other acts, sending emails to co-defendant Michael Roman regarding Trump presidential elector nominees in other states.
Grubman, Chesebro’s attorney, called the charges “unfounded” and said his client was never in Georgia on behalf of the campaign.
Smith, a Georgia lawyer, is charged with 12 counts, including three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer. The indictment alleges he was involved in the scheme to solicit public officers to unlawfully appoint Georgia presidential electors.
Hall, a Georgia bail bondsman, is charged with seven counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit election fraud. He is among those accused of conspiring to commit election fraud in Coffee County, according to the indictment.
All the defendants are also charged with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO.
ABC News’ Laura Romero, Meredith Deliso and Mark Osborne contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(MAUI) — For nearly two agonizing weeks, Dana Condrey said she and her parents lived in horror as they watched the death toll climb from the wildfire that devastated the Hawaiian Island of Maui and not knowing if her big brother perished or survived.
Her brother, 56-year-old Phillip Hudelson, who lived and worked in hard-hit Lahaina, vanished when the deadliest U.S. blaze in more than 100 years destroyed his residence and the restaurant where he worked as a bartender.
Instead of sitting by the phone waiting for news of her brother’s fate, Condrey, a married mother of two, booked a flight to Hawaii from her home in California and set out on a long-shot mission to find her only sibling, telling ABC News, “I told my mother I’d find him.”
Thanks to the information, including a DNA sample, she gave the Red Cross soon after arriving on Sunday in Maui, Condrey was reunited with her brother, finding him at a hotel resort where emergency workers had sheltered him, she said.
“I didn’t know I had so much love out there. I really didn’t,” Hudelson told ABC News on Monday, just three hours after being reunited with Condrey and wearing the same clothes he said he had on when he escaped the flames that leveled his neighborhood.
As search-and-rescue officials said there are still hundreds of people unaccounted for, Hudelson’s story of survival is providing a glimmer of hope for the families still looking for their loved ones.
“Don’t give up. Have faith,” Hudelson said in his message to those searching for relatives and friends.
On Tuesday, his mother, Laura Hudelson of Arizona, told ABC News, “My prayers were answered.”
“It just lifted a thousand pounds off my head,” she said of finally speaking to her son by phone on Monday. “I know what every mother, father, sibling of someone who hasn’t been found, is going through.”
Phillip Hudelson said his terrifying experience began Aug. 8 when he fled the fire that consumed his neighborhood in the hills above Lahaina, leveling his home and those of his neighbors.
“The fire happened so fast. We had to get off the mountain where I was living and it followed me,” he said of the fire.
Hudelson said he initially evacuated to the beach in Lahaina, but soon found himself on the move again when the intense flames and smoke caught up to him. He said he left his home on a scooter with just the clothes on his back and his cellphone, but no charger.
Forced to keep moving away from the fire, he said he found a safe haven on a beach in the neighboring town of Kaanapali, where he bedded down in a lounge chair he found at one of the hotels. By then, his cellphone battery was dead because power was out in the area, and he had no way of recharging his device, which contained the unmemorized phone numbers of his family members.
He said the next day when the fire died down, he drove his scooter back to Lahaina, but the town was barely recognizable with nearly every structure, including the restaurant where he worked, Cheeseburger in Paradise, burned to the ground. He said he saw a body on the ground.
“I knew my mother was dying to hear from me and I really wanted to get access to a phone, but there was no way to do it,” said Hudelson, adding that the remaining businesses still standing were all closed and everyone he encountered was in a similar situation — cut off from any kind of electronic communication.
Hudelson said he stayed at the beach in Kaanapali for 10 days, living off cans of soup he was able to purchase at the only grocery store in the area still open.
“They were ringing stuff up on a calculator because they had no power,” he said of the grocery store workers.
He said eventually two men camping out on the beach near him, informed him that the Red Cross was giving out hotel rooms to evacuees at a hotel close by.
“I jumped right up and went over there and by the grace of God, they gave me a room,” Hudelson said.
He said the hotel also directed him to Red Cross workers, who took his personal information. He said he had no idea his family had put him on a missing persons list.
Condrey said she and her family worked the phones calling authorities and acquaintances in Maui, trying desperately to locate Hudelson and chasing down every tip from afar to no avail.
“There was a social media post from Cheeseburger in Paradise for him to pick up his paycheck and then when I found out he didn’t pick that up that day, that night I booked a flight here,” Condrey told ABC News.
She said a high school girlfriend’s brother’s wife who lives in Maui heard of her plight and reached out, inviting her to stay with her as she searched for her brother.
Condrey said she hit the ground running once she reached Maui, passing out flyers and putting up posters of her missing brother.
She said that when she contacted the Red Cross, they asked for a DNA sample.
“I gave my DNA, which I didn’t want to do because it made me feel like he’s dead,” Condrey said.
She said that after the first day of searching for her brother, she said she felt “defeated.”
Then a Red Cross worker called her out of the blue that same night and informed her, “‘We found your brother.'”
Condrey said she called her parents right away, but her father told her he couldn’t believe the promising news until she actually saw him in person.
She said the next morning, she went to the hotel where she was informed her brother was staying, but the staff stopped her from going directly to his room, citing the hotel’s rules.
“We had to wait an hour for security to come and bang on his door,” Condrey said.
Hudelson said when he heard the knock at his door, he looked through the peephole and heard a security guard saying, “‘Your sister is downstairs.”
“I couldn’t believe it. I was like, ‘My sister is downstairs? I felt overwhelmed,” Hudelson said. “I walked through the lobby and she was out on a lounge chair, and I looked at her and said, ‘Oh my gosh.'”
Condrey said she started to cry and called their mother, putting her brother on the phone.
“He said to me, ‘Now mom, you didn’t think a little fire is going to hurt me,'” Laura Hudelson told ABC News.
She added, “My son’s a survivor and I knew that about him. He’s been through a lot. He went to Hawaii to get his life back.”
Phillip Hudelson said he’s lived in Maui for four years and plans to stay.
“I love this place,” he said.
ABC News’ Ashley Riegle and Maria Villalobos contributed to this report.
(ATLANTA) — Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee has set former Trump attorney Jenna Ellis’ bail at $100,000 in District Attorney Fani Willis’ election interference case.
The arrangement, which makes Ellis the eight of 19 defendants in the case to have bail set, comes a day after McAfee set former President Donald Trump’s bond at $200,000.
Ellis is accused of making false statements to overturn the 2020 election and of soliciting public officials to unlawfully appoint presidential electors.
Earlier Tuesday, McAfee signed off on a $75,000 bond for David Shafer and a $10,000 bond for Shawn Still, two of the 19 charged by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis last week in her sweeping racketeering indictment that alleges they “knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump” in Georgia.
Those defendants for whom bail has been set have begun turning themselves in for processing at the Fulton County Jail.
All have been been given until Friday at noon to surrender. The former president said Monday evening on his social media platform that he intends to surrender in Georgia on Thursday.
Ellis is charged with two counts, including one count of solicitation of violation of oath by public officer. Following her indictment last week, she responded on social media, saying: “The Democrats and the Fulton County DA are criminalizing the practice of law. I am resolved to trust the Lord.”
In addition to Trump, Judge McAfee set bond Monday for attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro at $100,000, for Ray Smith III at $50,000, and for Scott Hall at $10,000.
All the defendants’ bond agreements include a provision that they “shall perform no act to intimidate any person known to him or her to be a codefendant or witness in this case or to otherwise obstruct the administration of justice.”
Trump’s bond agreement says that includes “no direct or indirect threat” against codefendants or witnesses.
“The above shall include, but are not limited to, posts on social media or reposts of posts made by another individual on social media,” his agreement says.
All defendants are also prohibited from communicating about the facts of the case with codefendants, except through counsel.
Still, a current Georgia state senator, faces seven counts, including two counts of forgery in the first degree. According to indictment, Still, who was elected to the state senate in January, was one of 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a certificate falsely stating that Trump won the state and declaring themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors.
“The evidence at trial will show that Sen. Still is innocent as the day is long,” his attorney said in a statement to ABC News. “We look forward to our day in court to clear his good name.”
Shafer, a former Georgia GOP, is charged with eight counts, including three counts of false statements and writings. He was one of the so-called “false electors,” and reserved the room where fake electors met at the Georgia State Capitol on Dec. 14, 2020, according to the indictment.
“Listen. Tell them to go straight to room 2016 to avoid drawing attention to what we are doing,” he allegedly wrote in a text regarding the meeting, according to the indictment.
Attorneys for Shafer said in a statement to ABC News that he is “totally innocent of the charges” in Fulton County and that his conduct regarding the 2020 election was “lawful.”
Shafer’s attorney, Craig Gillen, on his way out of the building after negotiating with the DA Tuesday told ABC News that everything “went fine.”
An attorney for Cheseboro said on his way out of the district attorney’s office Monday that the bond negotiation process was a “pretty good process” and that he would “look forward to moving forward.”
“It was very straightforward, we had a meeting with the DA’s office, worked out the negotiated deal, signed the paperwork, and honestly it took longer to get copies than it did to negotiate,” the attorney, Scott Grubman, said.
Grubman said Cheseboro would surrender for processing at the Fulton Country Jail before the Friday deadline.
Asked if he was concerned about the conditions at the jail, where seven inmates have died this year, Grubman said, “Just like any jail, there’s clearly issues in the Fulton Rice Street Jail.”
“But I think its going to hopefully be as soon as possible, and we appreciate their cooperation,” Grubman said, praising the sheriff’s team.
As ABC News has previously reported, after an indictment has been handed down in Georgia, bond and conditions of release are typically worked out prior to any surrender. The bond can be paid through cash, a commercial surety, or a court program that requires a payment of 10% of the bond amount.
Trump is charged with 13 counts, including three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, related in part to the Jan. 2, 2021, phone call he made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Trump’s campaign called the indictment “un-American and wrong.” The former president contends his actions were not illegal and that the investigation is politically motivated.
Eastman is charged with nine counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. The indictment names him as among those allegedly involved in a scheme to solicit public officers to unlawfully appoint Georgia presidential electors.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Eastman’s attorney said, “The indictment in Georgia versus Donald Trump and 18 others sets out activity that is political, but not criminal.”
Chesebro faces seven counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. According to the indictment, he allegedly acted “in furtherance of the conspiracy” by, among other acts, sending emails to co-defendant Michael Roman regarding Trump presidential elector nominees in other states.
Grubman, Chesebro’s attorney, called the charges “unfounded” and said his client was never in Georgia on behalf of the campaign.
Smith, a Georgia lawyer, is charged with 12 counts, including three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer. The indictment alleges he was involved in the scheme to solicit public officers to unlawfully appoint Georgia presidential electors.
Hall, a Georgia bail bondsman, is charged with seven counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit election fraud. He is among those accused of conspiring to commit election fraud in Coffee County, according to the indictment.
All the defendants are also charged with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO.
ABC News’ Laura Romero, Meredith Deliso and Mark Osborne contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(ATLANTA) — Attorney John Eastman and co-defendant Scott Hall, two of the 18 co-defendants charged in the Georgia election interference case alongside former President Donald Trump, have been booked at the Fulton County Jail, according to the Fulton County Inmate Record Database.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Monday set bond for Eastman at $100,000, and for Hall at $10,000. Neither of them have been released yet, according to the inmate database.
Eastman is charged with nine counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. The indictment names him as among those allegedly involved in a scheme to solicit public officers to unlawfully appoint Georgia presidential electors.
“He is going to trial, there will be no plea deal,” Eastman’s attorney told ABC News.
Hall, a Georgia bail bondsman, is charged with seven counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit election fraud. He is among those accused of conspiring to commit election fraud in Coffee County.
All 19 defendants in the case are also charged with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO.
Trump and 18 others were charged last week by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in a sweeping racketeering indictment for alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia. The former president says his actions were not illegal and that the investigation is politically motivated.
Trump and the other defendants have until Friday to voluntarily surrender to authorities in Atlanta.
Trump wrote on his social media platform Monday night that he intends to surrender in Georgia on Thursday, after Judge McAfee set the former president’s bond at $200,000 on Monday.
Trump himself is facing 13 counts in the indictment, including three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by public officer, after he asked Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in a Jan. 2, 2021, phone call, to “find him” enough votes to win the state.
Co-defendant Jeffrey Clark, a former Department of Justice official charged in the case, filed a motion in federal court Tuesday seeking an emergency stay of the Fulton County proceedings, including his arrest warrant, until after Labor Day, so a judge could rule on his motion to remove his case to federal court.
Clark filed a separate motion to remove his case to federal court on the basis that he was serving as a high-ranking DOJ official during the timeframe alleged in the indictment.
Earlier Tuesday, co-defendant David Shafer, the former Georgia GOP chair, filed his own notice of removal to federal court, following a similar motion filed last week by former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows.
Shafer, one of Trump’s so-called “false electors,” argues in his filing that “as a contingent Presidential Elector, Mr. Shafer was an officer of the United States.”
The filing claims Shafer was charged for conduct that “stems directly from his service as a Presidential Elector nominee” and that he was working “at the direction of the President and other federal officers.”
ABC News’ Meredith Deliso and Mark Osborne contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(ATLANTA) — A day after a Fulton County judge set former President Donald Trump’s bond at $200,000 in District Attorney Fani Willis’ election interference case, the judge continues to set bail for the case’s other 18 defendants.
Judge Scott McAfee on Tuesday signed off on a $75,000 bond for David Shafer and a $10,000 bond for Shawn Still, two of the 19 charged by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis last week in a sweeping racketeering indictment that alleges they “knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump” in Georgia.
Those defendants for whom bail has been set have begun turning themselves in for processing at the Fulton County Jail.
All have been been given until Friday at noon to surrender. The former president said Monday evening on his social media platform that he intends to surrender in Georgia on Thursday.
In addition to Trump, Judge McAfee set bond Monday for attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro at $100,000, for Ray Smith III at $50,000, and for Scott Hall at $10,000.
All the defendants’ bond agreements include a provision that they “shall perform no act to intimidate any person known to him or her to be a codefendant or witness in this case or to otherwise obstruct the administration of justice.”
Trump’s bond agreement says that includes “no direct or indirect threat” against codefendants or witnesses.
“The above shall include, but are not limited to, posts on social media or reposts of posts made by another individual on social media,” his agreement says.
All defendants are also prohibited from communicating about the facts of the case with codefendants, except through counsel.
Still, a current Georgia state senator, faces seven counts, including two counts of forgery in the first degree. According to indictment, Still, who was elected to the state senate in January, was one of 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a certificate falsely stating that Trump won the state and declaring themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors.
“The evidence at trial will show that Sen. Still is innocent as the day is long,” his attorney said in a statement to ABC News. “We look forward to our day in court to clear his good name.”
Shafer, a former Georgia GOP, is charged with eight counts, including three counts of false statements and writings. He was one of the so-called “false electors,” and reserved the room where fake electors met at the Georgia State Capitol on Dec. 14, 2020, according to the indictment.
“Listen. Tell them to go straight to room 2016 to avoid drawing attention to what we are doing,” he allegedly wrote in a text regarding the meeting, according to the indictment.
Attorneys for Shafer said in a statement to ABC News that he is “totally innocent of the charges” in Fulton County and that his conduct regarding the 2020 election was “lawful.”
Shafer’s attorney, Craig Gillen, on his way out of the building after negotiating with the DA Tuesday told ABC News that everything “went fine.”
An attorney for Cheseboro said on his way out of the district attorney’s office Monday that the bond negotiation process was a “pretty good process” and that he would “look forward to moving forward.”
“It was very straightforward, we had a meeting with the DA’s office, worked out the negotiated deal, signed the paperwork, and honestly it took longer to get copies than it did to negotiate,” the attorney, Scott Grubman, said.
Grubman said Cheseboro would surrender for processing at the Fulton Country Jail before the Friday deadline.
Asked if he was concerned about the conditions at the jail, where seven inmates have died this year, Grubman said, “Just like any jail, there’s clearly issues in the Fulton Rice Street Jail.”
“But I think its going to hopefully be as soon as possible, and we appreciate their cooperation,” Grubman said, praising the sheriff’s team.
As ABC News has previously reported, after an indictment has been handed down in Georgia, bond and conditions of release are typically worked out prior to any surrender. The bond can be paid through cash, a commercial surety, or a court program that requires a payment of 10% of the bond amount.
Trump is charged with 13 counts, including three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, related in part to the Jan. 2, 2021, phone call he made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Trump’s campaign called the indictment “un-American and wrong.” The former president contends his actions were not illegal and that the investigation is politically motivated.
Eastman is charged with nine counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. The indictment names him as among those allegedly involved in a scheme to solicit public officers to unlawfully appoint Georgia presidential electors.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Eastman’s attorney said, “The indictment in Georgia versus Donald Trump and 18 others sets out activity that is political, but not criminal.”
Chesebro faces seven counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree. According to the indictment, he allegedly acted “in furtherance of the conspiracy” by, among other acts, sending emails to co-defendant Michael Roman regarding Trump presidential elector nominees in other states.
Grubman, Chesebro’s attorney, called the charges “unfounded” and said his client was never in Georgia on behalf of the campaign.
Smith, a Georgia lawyer, is charged with 12 counts, including three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer. The indictment alleges he was involved in the scheme to solicit public officers to unlawfully appoint Georgia presidential electors.
Hall, a Georgia bail bondsman, is charged with seven counts, including two counts of conspiracy to commit election fraud. He is among those accused of conspiring to commit election fraud in Coffee County, according to the indictment.
All the defendants are also charged with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO.
ABC News’ Laura Romero, Meredith Deliso and Mark Osborne contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Tropical Storm Harold made landfall on Padre Island, Texas, Tuesday morning as heavy rain and tropical storm-force winds slammed the region.
Storm surge, urban flooding and coastal flooding are also possible.
A flash flood warning is in effect for the area, including Corpus Christi.
In Corpus Christi, “the storm surge is expected to produce moderate coastal flooding through late Wednesday, with the potential for water to reach the dunes and beach access roads,” the city’s Emergency Operations Center said in a statement.
“The good news is that the bulk of this rainfall will be beneficial for the drought-stricken region, but too much rainfall too fast could lead to isolated to scattered instances of flash flooding,” the NWS Weather Prediction Center said Tuesday.
(ATLANTA) — Scott Hall, one of the 18 co-defendants charged in the Georgia election interference case alongside former President Donald Trump, was booked at the Fulton County Jail on Tuesday morning, according to the Fulton County Inmate Record Database.
Hall, a Georgia bail bondsman, is among those accused of conspiring to commit election fraud in Coffee County.
He has not yet been released, according to the database.
Trump and 18 others were charged in a sweeping racketeering indictment for alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia. The former president says his actions were not illegal and that the investigation is politically motivated.
Hall is facing seven counts in the indictment, including one count of violation of the Georgia RICO Act; 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; and conspiracy to defraud the state.
Former Trump attorney John Eastman plans surrender to authorities today at the Fulton County Jail this morning, his lawyer told ABC News.
Eastman is planning to show up late Tuesday morning, according to his attorney, after Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Monday set bond for Eastman at $100,000.
“He is going to trial, there will be no plea deal,” Eastman’s attorney told ABC News.
Trump and the other defendants have until Friday to voluntarily surrender to authorities.
Trump wrote on his social media platform Monday night that he intends to surrender in Georgia on Thursday. Trump himself is facing 13 counts in the indictment.
ABC News’ Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Photography by Keith Getter (all rights reserved)/Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Tropical storm warnings are in effect for more than 42 million people in Southern California, as Hilary is expected to be the first storm of its kind to hit the region since Nora in 1997.
Once a Category 4 hurricane, Hilary weakened as it approached the West Coast. Flood watches are in effect from Southern California and Arizona to Oregon and Idaho.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Aug 21, 3:27 AM EDT
Thousands without power as storm downs trees
Thousands of customers in Southern California were without power at about midnight, with the highest number of outages in San Bernardino County.
About 14,000 customers were without power in that inland county, along with 7,600 in Riverside County to the south, according to PowerOutage.us, a site that tracks electric providers.
About 7,900 customers in Los Angeles County had experienced power outages as of about 6 p.m. on Sunday, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said.
“The City of Los Angeles is responding to reports of flooding, downed trees, and wires as well as other calls for service,” the city’s emergency officials said in an update. “Zero deaths have been reported in connection with the storm or earthquake thus far. At least 150 tree-related issues and eight mudflows have been reported.”
By midnight, about 3,700 customers in Los Angeles were still without power, according to PowerOutages.us.
Aug 21, 2:28 AM EDT
Interstate through Cathedral City closes amid flooding
Traffic headed in both directions on Interstate 10 was brought to standstill as roads flooded in Cathedral City on Sunday, officials said.
“I-10 in Cathedral City from Gene Autry to Bob Hope Dr. is closed due to flooding and debris on the highway. Unknown duration of clear,” the California Department of Transportation’s District 8 said on social media.
Cathedral City is Palm Springs’ neighbor in the Coachella Valley.
Emergency 911 service was knocked out by the storm late Sunday in both cities, police in Cathedral City and in Palm Springs said.
Aug 20, 11:34 PM EDT
Hilary winds slow down, but flash flood warnings remain
As of 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT, Hilary remains a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds now down to 45 mph. The center of Hilary is located about 105 miles northwest of San Diego. It is moving at 28 mph.
Widespread flash flood warnings remain in effect across Southern California as areas of heavy rain continue to sweep through the region. The flash flood warnings in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties have been extended until 3 a.m. PT Monday. Flash flooding is ongoing across the region. There are also warnings in many desert areas, including Death Valley.
The widespread heavy rain in Southern California will begin to ease up soon, first in the southeastern part of the state. After 10 p.m. PT Sunday, there is a notable improvement regionwide, with the worst of the heavy rain over and the rain becoming less intense. There is lingering rain overnight in some areas but not as heavy as earlier.
Even though the rain ends, there could still be residual impacts, like landslides or rockslides.
– ABC News Meteorologist Daniel Peck
Aug 20, 10:03 PM EDT
Hilary moves into Southern California
Hilary is continuing as a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds now down to 50 mph as of 5 p.m. PT Sunday. The center of Hilary has now officially moved into Southern California and is located about 25 miles south, southwest of Palm Springs. It is currently moving north at 23 mph.
– ABC News Meteorologist Daniel Peck
Aug 20, 5:29 PM EDT
All Southwest and Frontier airline flights suspended out of Ontario, California, airport
Ontario International Airport has suspended all Southwest Airlines and Frontier Airlines flights from Sunday at noon until Monday as Tropical Storm Hilary has begun to impact the West Coast, the airport said on social media.
Southwest Airlines has canceled 715 flights, the most flights of all U.S. airlines, according to FlightAware.
Frontier canceled 71 flights, according to FlightAware data.
Aug 20, 3:53 PM EDT
Latest maps show path of storm over the Southwest
The National Weather Service has issued a flash flood warning for parts of Southern California as the region begins to experience the effects of Tropical Storm Hilary.
Los Angeles County, including downtown Los Angeles, and Ventura County were included in the advisory.
Heavy rain is now becoming more widespread across portions of the region. The heaviest rain is focused over much of the Interstate 5 corridor, north of San Diego into Los Angeles.
Rainfall rates up to 1 inch per hour are possible in this area, and flash flooding will likely develop, forecasts show.
Rounds of heavy rain are expected to continue to sweep across the greater Los Angeles metro area through the next several hours.
Hilary will then move northward over the next 24 hours. As the system moves over land, it will weaken and become disorganized but could remain a tropical storm as it tracks across Southern California.
A tropical storm warning remains in effect for San Diego, Palm Springs, Riverside and Los Angeles.
Flood watches remain across a large swath of the Southwest, including cities like San Diego, Palm Springs, and Las Vegas. These watches have also been extended northward up to Idaho for the potential for heavy rain and flash flooding early in the week.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Weather Prediction Center has issued a high risk alert for excessive rainfall across Southern, California, from Palm Springs to San Bernardino and up to Death Valley. “High Risk” days are rare and typically dangerous — 39% of all flood-related fatalities and 83% of all flood-related damages in the U.S. occur on “High Risk” days, records show.
A moderate risk alert for extreme rainfall is in effect from Las Vegas to San Diego and Los Angeles.
The biggest rainfall totals will be across the mountains east of San Diego, north and east of Los Angeles. Through Monday, a widespread 1 to 3 inches of rain is forecast across much of Southern California, the desert Southwest and across southern Nevada.
Three to 6 inches or more of rain is forecast across the mountains areas in Southern California. Several inches could still fall in some desert locations, with the greatest chance closer to Death Valley. Isolated amounts of 6 to 10 inches are still possible in some regions.
One to 2 inches of rainfall quickly falling in a desert location can cause major impacts due to the oversaturated soil.
-ABC News’ Daniel Peck
Aug 20, 2:18 PM EDT
Hilary makes landfall in Baja California, Mexico
Tropical Storm Hilary has made landfall just south of the U.S. border.
The storm system moved over the northern Baja California peninsula in Mexico at about 11 a.m. PT, the National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory.
Hilary is currently located aout 215 miles south-southeast of San Diego and is moving north-northwest at 25 mph.
Maximum sustained winds have weakened to 65 mph.
The storm is expected to move through Southern California on Sunday afternoon, bringing catastrophic and life-threatening flooding over portions of the Southwest through Monday.
-ABC News’ Dan Peck
Aug 20, 1:11 PM EDT
Nearly 1,000 flights canceled ahead of storm
Airlines have canceled 944 flights so far as Tropical Storm Hilary approaches the West Coast, according to FlightAware.
The majority of the affected airports are in the West.
Southwest Airlines has cancelled 683 flights, the most flights of all U.S. airlines.
The airline has canceled all flights in and out of Palm Springs International Airport until at least Monday.
-ABC News’ Sam Sweeny
Aug 20, 11:29 AM EDT
Hilary weakens to a tropical storm
Hurricane Hilary, once a Category 4 hurricane, was downgraded to a tropical storm Sunday as it approaches the West Coast.
The center of the storm system is currently located about 220 miles south-southeast of San Diego. It is moving about 25 mph to the north-northwest.
About a quarter of an inch of rain has already fallen in Palm Springs on Sunday morning, while San Bernardino has seen about .8 of an inch, according to the National Weather Service.
Tropical storm force winds will start moving into Southern California over the next few hours.
Catastrophic and life-threatening flooding is likely over portions of the Southwest through Monday, forecasts show.
-ABC News’ Kenton Gewecke
Aug 19, 11:13 PM EDT
Hilary weakens to category 1 hurricane
Hilary continues to weaken as it moves north-northwest, now a category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph.
Aug 19, 10:53 PM EDT
Evacuation orders issued for areas of San Bernardino County
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department issued a mandatory evacuation order for several regions at 7:15 p.m. PT. The regions include Oak Glen, Forest Falls, Mountain Home Village, Angelus Oaks, and northeast Yucaipa.
Earlier Saturday, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s issued an evacuation warning to its residents. At the time, San Bernardino County spokesperson David Wert told ABC News, “The purpose is to warn the population that there is an impending danger. They should start making arrangements to evacuate.”
The Sheriff’s office released an evacuation map to help residents know if they’re in the affected area.
Aug 19, 8:58 PM EDT
Gov. Newsom declares state of emergency ahead of Hurricane Hilary
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for much of Southern California on Saturday ahead of Hurricane Hilary making landfall.
“California has thousands of people on the ground working hand-in-hand with federal and local personnel to support communities in Hurricane Hilary’s path with resources, equipment and expertise,” the governor said in a statement.
There are currently “more than 7,500 boots on the ground deployed” to help local communities the governor’s statement continued.
The impacts of the storm are expected to begin Saturday evening lasting through Monday, according to the statement.
Aug 19, 7:39 PM EDT
Biden briefed on Hurricane Hilary
President Joe Biden has received a briefing from senior staff on the latest preparedness plans for Hurricane Hilary and his team is working with state and local agencies ahead of the storm, according to the White House.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said earlier she has been providing “continuous updates” to the White House ahead of the storm.
-ABC News’ Justin Gomez
Aug 19, 6:22 PM EDT
LA County Parks to temporarily close
The County of Los Angeles Parks system said it will close on Sunday and Monday “out of an abundance of caution” due to Hilary.
That includes trails, lakes, beaches, pools, botanical gardens and playgrounds. All programs and classes are also canceled.
“While parks are not fenced in, visitors are encouraged to stay home,” LA County Parks said.
-ABC News’ Jennifer Watts and Alex Stone
Aug 19, 5:25 PM EDT
Hilary weakens to category 2 hurricane
Hilary continues to weaken as it moves north-northwest, now a category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph.
Aug 19, 5:25 PM EDT
FEMA in touch with California, Nevada governors
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told reporters she is providing “continuous updates” to the White House about preparations ahead of the storm.
Criswell said she has also been in contact with California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo to discuss “what type of support that they may need from FEMA and the federal family, but also to remind them that we are ready to support them as needed for this storm.”
Criswell said they will not be moving any resources from Maui to California or Nevada to respond to the storm.
“We are still fully engaged in our efforts to help the state and people of Hawaii recover but it’s also equally important that we are making sure communities that are in the path of Hilary also have the resources that they may need, and to what is likely going to be heavy impacts from rain and flooding,” she said.
-ABC News’ Justin Gomez
Aug 19, 4:49 PM EDT
Evacuation warning issued for areas of San Bernardino County
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s office has issued an evacuation warning to residents in parts of the county.
“An evacuation warning is not an evacuation order — it’s a warning to people to be on notice they could be asked to evacuate at any moment,” San Bernardino County spokesperson David Wert told ABC News. “The purpose is to warn the population that there is an impending danger. They should start making arrangements to evacuate.”
The storm is expected to hit San Bernardino County “pretty hard,” Wert said, noting there is a threat of debris flowing into areas downstream of recent brushfires.
“Hopefully the order won’t come, but we want people to be ready,” Wert added.
-ABC News’ Samira Said
Aug 19, 4:06 PM EDT
Rare ‘high risk’ forecast for excessive rainfall issued
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Weather Prediction Center issued a rare “high risk” forecast for excessive rainfall for Sunday across a large swath of Southern California, from Palm Springs up toward Death Valley.
“High risk” forecasts are only issued a couple times a year on average, and 39% of all flood-related fatalities and 83% of all flood-related damages in the U.S. occur on those days.
A “moderate risk” for extreme rainfall has also been issued from Las Vegas to San Diego and Los Angeles. Numerous flash floods could unfold in these areas as well, with some of them potentially significant and very dangerous.
The deadliest hazard associated with tropical cyclones over the past decade is flooding from heavy rain.
-ABC News’ Dan Peck
Aug 19, 11:50 AM EDT
Southern California expected to see tropical storm winds Sunday
Winds from Hilary will reach tropical storm strength in Southern California on Sunday afternoon as the storm passes by.
Heavy rainfall is expected across the southwestern U.S., peaking late tonight through Sunday night. Rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches, with isolated amounts of 10 inches, are expected across portions of Southern California and southern Nevada. Dangerous to catastrophic flooding is expected.
Elsewhere across portions of the western U.S., rainfall totals of 1 to 3 inches are expected, resulting in localized, some significant, flash flooding.
-ABC News’ Kenton Gewecke
Aug 19, 11:50 AM EDT
Hurricane Hilary downgraded to a category 3 storm
Hurricane Hilary has entered cooler water and is starting to weaken, now a category 3 hurricane with sustained winds reaching 125 mph as it moves north-northwest at 16 mph.
Landfall is expected in Mexico on Sunday. The storm is then expected to be at tropical storm strength as it enters southern California, marking the first tropical storm in Southern California since Nora in 1997, more than 25 years ago.
Catastrophic and life-threatening flooding is expected in Southern California.
Rain from Hilary should reach California later Saturday. Early morning monsoonal showers have lead to flash flooding Saturday morning, but that is not associated with Hilary.
(ATLANTA) — LaShawn Thompson was neither the first nor the last person to die in the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta, Georgia, last year.
But when the circumstances of his death were revealed — he was found “eaten alive by insects and bedbugs” in a filthy cell, according to his family — people outside of Fulton County began to take notice.
The revelations about Thompson’s death in April of this year, which an autopsy report said was caused by “dehydration, malnutrition, severe body insect infestation and untreated decompensated schizophrenia,” prompted the resignation of multiple members of the jail’s executive staff. Last month, the Department of Justice announced that it had launched a sweeping civil investigation into the conditions at the facility.
“The recent allegations of filthy housing teeming with insects, rampant violence resulting in death and injuries, and officers using excessive force are cause for grave concern and warrant a thorough investigation,” said Ryan Buchanan, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.
Now the infamous jail will be in the spotlight once again, when former President Donald Trump and the 18 others charged in District Attorney Fani Willis’ election interference probe are expected to surrender themselves at the facility for processing this week.
The processing of the former president and others is also likely to underscore what critics have called a two-tiered system of justice for white-collar defendants.
‘Horrifying’ conditions
Known locally by its street location, “Rice Street,” the Fulton County Jail has suffered from overcrowding, inmate deaths, excessive force from officers, structural issues, outbreaks of lice and scabies, and malnourishment among inmates, according to the DOJ and multiple nonprofit watchdog groups that have issued reports on the facility.
A public records request conducted by the Southern Center for Human Rights found that during a September 2022 outbreak, 100 percent of inmates in one unit suffered from lice, scabies, or both. Among those affected, 90% were also found to be significantly malnourished.
“The fact that people held in the custody of Fulton County are so malnourished and ill that they are experiencing muscle wasting commonly seen in people with late-stage cancers is horrifying,” said SCHR executive director Terrica Ganzy.
When Trump arrives at the jail for processing, he is expected to spend no more than a few hours inside the facility. In contrast, many defendants spend weeks in the facility awaiting their release on bond or their trial date.
Some have died there.
Christopher Smith, 34, died inside the jail earlier this month after waiting nearly four years for his trial to start. Another inmate in a mental health unit was found dead in October with his wrists and ankles tied, according to Atlanta ABC affiliate WSB.
Others have died while incarcerated because they couldn’t afford bail.
This past Thursday, Alexander Hawkins, 66, was pronounced dead after being found unresponsive in a medical unit cell while awaiting trial. He was being held on a $5,000 bond for a shoplifting charge.
Last year 15 inmates died inside Fulton County Jail; this year, six have died.
According to a 2022 report from the American Civil Liberties Union, the Fulton County Jail housed 515 people who remained unindicted for over 90 days, 242 who were only charged with misdemeanors, and 293 who could not pay bail.
‘We got mugshots ready for you’
The 19 defendants in the election interference case — which include Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows and his one-time personal attorney Rudy Giuliani — will likely encounter a straightforward fingerprinting and mugshot process, according to former Georgia prosecutor Chris Timmons.
“Unless somebody tells me differently, we are following our normal practices, and so [it] doesn’t matter your status, we got mugshots ready for you,” Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat said earlier this month about the planned processing.
The 19 defendants are then likely to be released on their signatures, known as an “own bond,” meaning they will likely not have to put down money or property given their relatively low flight risk, Timmons said.
However, for many defendants awaiting arraignment at Rice Street, the process is vastly different.
Booking at the jail normally includes surrendering property and undergoing a medical screening before entering the main jail to await pretrial release, according to the jail’s website.
Timmons said that the time to complete that process varies. One of Timmons’ white-collar clients, due to an issue with his warrant, once spent four days completing the process before securing his bond, Timmons said.
Trump’s lawyers are expected to meet with Fulton County officials this week to negotiate the former president’s surrender package before Trump turns himself in, sources have told ABC News.
Like the other 18 defendants, Trump is then expected to be processed at the jail by this Friday — assuming he does not negotiate an alternate surrender location.
