Rudy Giuliani filed paperwork Monday afternoon asking a judge to require his codefendants who have pleaded guilty and accepted plea deals to sit for interviews with his legal team—a request that came on the day of the deadline for Giuliani to file motions in the case.
Giuliani team’s requested that codefendants Jenna Ellis, Kenneth Chesebro, Sidney Powell and Scott Hall—who have all pleaded guilty in the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, case—be required to sit for an interview with them, saying “the opportunity to interview witnesses prior to trial is the bare minimum that is required by Georgia law.”
Giuliani’s lawyers said in the filing that the interviews are “necessary … in part because their video proffers have raised questions about the content and completeness of their individual statement.”
The plea agreements, however, say that the codefendants are “not permitted to communicate with any other co-defendant concerning the facts or circumstances of this case,” but are required to “cooperate with the Fulton County District Attorney’s office and participate in additional interviews and assist the State in pretrial matters,” per the filing.
The filing came just days after Giuliani’s request to extend the deadline for him to file motions—because his team was “still processing” discovery—was denied.
“Counsel for Defendant Giuliani will be unable to properly investigate the facts of this case or properly advise Defendant Giuliani about the potential evidence in this case unless they are able to interview co-defendants Jenna Ellis, Kenneth Chesebro, Sidney Powell and Scott Hall,” the filing reads.
Another codefendant in the case, Bob Cheeley, also filed Monday afternoon asking for his case to be separated from the other 14 defendants, according to a reporter from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Cheeley’s filing argued that the number of defendants could “confuse the jury” with regard to what evidence and laws apply to each defendant.
Former President Donald Trump and 18 others—including Giuliani—were indicted in August 2023 by a grand jury in Georgia for their alleged role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state. Giuliani faces 13 felony counts as part of the indictment, including one violation of the RICO act, three counts of false statements and writings, conspiracy to commit impersonating a public officer and more; he has pleaded not guilty. Ellis, Chesebro, Powell and Hall all faced similar charges for conspiracy, interfering with equipment or committing or aiding false documents, but accepted deals, pleading guilty in recent months. At least Powell and Ellis had proffer sessions—sessions between prosecutors and the subject of an investigation that are often required as part of a plea deal—and footage leaked of the interviews in November, including one clip in which Ellis said a Trump administration official told her “the boss is not going to leave” the White House after the election, referring to Trump.
