The case alleging former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants conspired to alter the outcome of Georgia’s 2020 presidential election has been assigned to Scott McAfee, a lifelong Georgian and Fulton County Superior Court judge.
McAfee assumed the judge role in February, having previously served as a prosecutor and state inspector general. In this role, he was “responsible for investigating allegations of fraud, waste, and abuse in the Executive Branch of state government.”
Georgia’s Republican Governor, Brian Kemp, praised McAfee’s appointment as inspector general in March 2021, saying he was a “strong addition to my administration.”
Kemp further commented on his background: “His experience as a tough prosecutor equips him to search out fraud, waste, abuse, and corruption, and bring those to justice who break the law.”
Kemp on Tuesday asserted that there was no evidence of any election fraud in Georgia that was proven in court during the 2020 election.
The 2020 election in Georgia was not stolen.
For nearly three years now, anyone with evidence of fraud has failed to come forward – under oath – and prove anything in a court of law. Our elections in Georgia are secure, accessible, and fair and will continue to be as long as I… pic.twitter.com/jaru2iBDo7
— Brian Kemp (@BrianKempGA) August 15, 2023
However, a lawsuit seeking a full independent audit of the Georgia election had found hundreds of cases of “double-voting” and mistallied vote batches. That lawsuit would late be thrown out by Henry County Superior Court Chief Judge Brian Amero in October 2021. He reasoned that the case had a lack of standing.
Before serving as inspector general, McAfee held positions as the assistant United States attorney in Georgia’s Northern District and as senior assistant district attorney in the Fulton County Atlanta Judicial Circuit. Here, he prosecuted various crimes, including drug trafficking, fraud, armed robbery, and murder.
Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee has given Americans a glimpse of how he might handle the Trump lawsuit. He earlier presided over a case involving Trump-backing attorney Lin Wood.
Judge McAfee imposed $5,000 in criminal contempt fines on Wood and held out the prospect of $15,000 in civil contempt charges for future disparagement.
“I can’t overlook the protracted and flagrant nature of the violation,” McAfee said of Wood’s disparaging comments against former legal associates.
Judge McAfee isn’t the only judge handling a Trump indictment with a history of adverse decisions against the former president or his allies.
Tanya Sue Chutkan, who has been appointed to handle the January 6 case, donated $4,300 to former President Barack Obama’s campaign, worked phones, and organized fundraisers for his 2012 campaign. Obama appointed her U.S. District judge.
Trump, charged with 13 counts including racketeering for supposedly trying to illegally influence the 2020 Georgia election, is among 19 defendants in the case. He maintains his innocence.
