Topline
The sole remaining criminal case against President Donald Trump has now been dropped, after a new prosecutor took over from Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and urged a judge to dismiss the case, which had alleged Trump and others tried to overturn the 2020 election.
President Donald Trump delivers remarks in the Oval Office of the White House on November 21 in Washington, DC.
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Key Facts
Prosecutor Peter Skandalakis filed a motion with the court asking for the case to be dismissed after he took over the probe from Willis, who was disqualified from overseeing the case due to her romantic relationship with prosecutor Nathan Wade.
Judge Scott McAfee granted the prosecutor’s motion and dropped the case in a one-page order minutes later, ruling the case is now “dismissed in its entirety.”
Skandalakis took over the case earlier in November and was tasked with determining how, and if, the case should move forward, saying at the time his “only objective is to ensure that this case is handled properly, fairly, and with full transparency discharging my duties without fear, favor, or affection.”
In a court filing Wednesday, the new prosecutor argued that while the acts alleged in the indictment would prove a “conspiracy” to overturn the 2020 election results, there was not a sufficient legal basis to bring many of the charges, and he did not have the resources to prosecute such a sprawling case.
Skandalakis noted going to trial in the case against Trump even years after he leaves office would be a “remarkable feat” and moving forward with the case only against Trump’s allies “would be both illogical and unduly burdensome and costly,” ultimately concluding that bringing the charges in federal court—as special prosecutor Jack