In November 2025, a new prosecutor took the wheel of the RICO election interference case against U.S. President Donald Trump. However, the case still faces an uncertain future.
Peter Skandalakis, director of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, said in a statement that he had appointed himself as the prosecutor in the case, which accuses Trump and several co-defendants of unlawfully conspiring to subvert former President Joe Biden’s 2020 election win in Georgia. They have pleaded not guilty, and Trump lawyer Steve Sadow said he remains confident that “a fair and impartial review will lead to a dismissal of the case.”
The move allows the 2023 case to live on following an appeals court ruling that disqualified the prosecutor who initially brought the case, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, an elected Democrat in Atlanta.
As head of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, Skandalakis was required by law to identify a replacement for Willis. An appeals court ruled last year that Willis had created an “appearance of impropriety” by having a romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she had hired to lead the case.
Skandalakis said he appointed himself after being unable to find another prosecutor willing to take over the case.
“Several prosecutors were contacted and, while all were respectful and professional, each declined the appointment,” he said in a statement. “Out of respect for their privacy and professional discretion, I will not identify those prosecutors or disclose their reasons for declining.”
The case could go one way or the other. As chief prosecutor, Skandalakis has the authority to unilaterally dismiss the indictment, and there is precedent for such a decision. Last year, Skandalakis concluded that charges should not be brought against Georgia Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, a Republican investigated by Willis, over his efforts to overturn Trump’s 2020 election defeat in Georgia.
Pretrial and Trial Misconduct
Prosecutor, juror, judge, and even defense attorney misconduct sometimes stains criminal proceedings. Sometimes, a stained tie can be washed and reworn. Other times, it must be thrown out. Believe me. I have personal experience in this area.
Prosecutors
Certain prosecutorial misconduct, especially during the pretrial phase, is usually a stain that won’t come out. Sexual shenanigans are rare in these cases. Failure to turn over exculpatory evidence is a better example.
In Georgia, a prosecutor must give a Marietta criminal defense lawyer exculpatory evidence no later than ten days before trial begins. The deadline is much earlier, typically between thirty and forty-five days before trial, in many jurisdictions.
Exculpatory evidence usually includes alibi confirmations, chemical test results adverse to the prosecutor, and adverse witness statements.
In their defense, missing the exculpatory evidence turnover deadline often isn’t the prosecutor’s fault. Assume that, in the case of State vs. Hank, police officers contact a witness who says she saw a woman, instead of a man, fleeing from the crime scene. If officers never follow up with that witness, and they probably won’t the prosecutor doesn’t know about it.
But that’s no excuse. Under federal law, prosecutors must turn over such evidence and a Marietta criminal defense lawyer must have sufficient opportunity to use it.
Jurors
Prior to the internet age, juror misconduct stairs were almost unheard of. Today, they’re rather common, especially in Cobb County.
Curious jurors often do independent research. They may Google information about the judge, the lawyers, or more frequently, the defendant and the alleged crime. Most jurors see nothing wrong with such conduct. The problem is that jurors must consider a case based solely on the evidence presented at trial. They cannot “help” one side or the other.
The internet also indirectly affects the number of juror deliberation issues. The Tik Tok generation often cannot stay on a singe topic for more than a few minutes. So, if juror deliberations drag on, they check out.
Mostly for these reasons, a Marietta criminal defense lawyer usually interviews all jurors after all trials. Additionally, most jurors are very candid about what arguments and evidence struck a chord and what did not. This knowledge enables a Marietta criminal defense lawyer to further refine trial tactics.
Judges
Prosecutorial and juror misconduct stains are usually deep and dark. The rules are different for judges.
Judges sometimes call a ball a strike or otherwise make bad calls. But a bad call alone is not a bad stain. Instead, a Marietta criminal defense lawyer must prove that bad call was an abuse of discretion (totally off the rails) that affected the outcome of the trial.
The claims are also difficult to win on appeal for practical reasons. Many appellate courts will throw prosecutors and even jurors under the bus. But judges enjoy a sort of informal immunity in these matters.
Defense Lawyers
A bad result does not necessarily mean a lawyer did a bad job. If a defendant had ineffective assistance of counsel, however, that’s different.
Once again, ineffective assistance of counsel is hard to prove. Some Marietta criminal defense lawyers are incompetent as a matter of law, usually because they have suspended licenses or aren’t licensed to practice in a certain court, like federal court. Other lawyers are so bad that their assistance falls below the standard of care. These extreme situations are usually limited to failure to show up at trial and other such grievous errors.
Georgia RICO Cases
A few final words about the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law. Georgia’s RICO statute allows prosecutors to charge individuals or groups when they engage in at least two interrelated predicate offenses (such as fraud, drug-trafficking, extortion, bribery) as part of a common enterprise.
State law is broader than its federal counterparts in several respects. For example, Georgia does not strictly require long-term continuity or multiple individuals for an “enterprise.”
A RICO conviction means between 5 and 20 years in prison, in addition to substantial fines (up to $25,000, or three times the profits from the racketeering activity) and asset forfeiture.
RICO cases are especially common in bank fraud and other white-collar crimes. Under RICO, even a low-level participant who didn’t know much, or anything, about the operation could face severe penalties.
Everyone must play by the rules all the time. For a free consultation with an experienced Marietta criminal defense attorney, contact The Phillips Law Firm, LLC. The sooner you reach out to us, the sooner we start working for you.
