Former President Donald Trump will surrender to the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta this Thursday, where he faces 13 felony charges related to attempts to overturn the state’s 2020 election result.
This will be Trump’s fourth arrest since he became the first former president in U.S. history to be indicted in April – all of which he denies wrongdoing in, and accuses of being a targeted effort to harm his 2024 presidential campaign. His appearance in Georgia will come just a day after the first Republican primary debate, which Trump intends to skip.
Trump’s $200,000 bond agreement requires he refrain from intimidating co-defendants or witnesses in the case, or communicating with them about the case except through his lawyer – with a specific mention of “posts on social media or reposts of posts.”.
“Can you believe it? I’ll be going to Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday to be ARRESTED,” Trump posted to Truth Social Monday night, hours after the bond agreement was finalized.
Since the bond has already been set, Trump will only be in Fulton County Jail for the booking, during which the area is expected to be on “hard lockdown.” During the process, defendants are expected to pass a security checkpoint before being photographed, fingerprinted and providing certain personal information.
In past appearances in a New York state court and Miami and D.C. federal courts, Trump has not been handcuffed or required to pose for a mugshot. However, Georgia officials stated that “unless told differently,” they would treat the former president the same as any other charged with crimes in the state.
“So it doesn’t matter your status, we’ll have a mugshot ready for you,” said Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat at a news conference this month.
Willis aims to bring the defendants collectively to trial on March 4 of next year – just a day before Super Tuesday, when most of the delegates in the GOP primaries are decided. However, Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee will be the final say on the date.
Fulton County Jail also has something of a sour reputation – being the subject of a Department of Justice investigation just last month regarding unsanitary conditions and the deaths of several detainees, the majority of whom have not been convicted but are held because they cannot post bail.
Labat pledged to cooperate with the investigation, saying it reinforced his calls for a new jail, as Fulton County Jail is “dilapidated” and “dangerously overcrowded.”
(Photo courtesy of Evan Vucci | AP)
