Mark Meadows, John Eastman plead not guilty and waive arraignment
Former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Trump-allied attorney John Eastman entered "not guilty" pleas in Georgia Tuesday, according to court records, waiving their scheduled arraignment appearances.
All 19 defendants in the Georgia case have now waived their arraignments and pleaded "not guilty."
Cathy Latham, former GOP chair for Coffee County and a member of the Georgia Republican Party's executive committee, also pleaded not guilty on Tuesday and waived her arraignment hearing, as did co-defendant Misty Hampton, former Coffee County elections supervisor. Former President Donald Trump pleaded "not guilty" last week and waived his arraignment hearing, which is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Wenesday.
Trump and 18 co-defendants face felony charges over an alleged scheme to overturn the Peach State's 2020 presidential election results. Trump has been charged with racketeering and he and his co-defendants stand accused of organizing a "criminal enterprise" to thwart certification of the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. The former president surrendered at a local jail on Aug. 24, submitting a booking photo and his finger prints. He stands released on $200,000 bond.
Meadows has been trying to remove his case from Georgia and into the hands of the federal court system, arguing that he was carrying out his duties as a federal official. Meadows took the witness stand last week as a part of that effort, denying two of the allegations leveled against him in the Georgia indictment.
Unlike the federal trials Trump faces, the proceedings in Georgia will be televised. A date has not yet been set for the trial.