Former President Donald Trump’s bond is set in Georgia case

CARD AND WELCOME BACK. FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS BEEN HANDED ANOTHER INDICTMENT, THIS TIME ON THE STATE CHARGES IN GEORGIA, ACCUSING HIM AND 18 OTHERS OF TRYING TO OVERTURN THE 2020 ELECTION RESULTS IN THAT STATE. SO JOHN GRAVY FROM THE UNH AND FRANKLIN PIERCE LAW SCHOOL JOINS US NOW TO ANSWER SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE HAVE HERE. AND RIGHT AWAY, HOW SERIOUS ARE THE CHARGES HERE? ONE OF THE 13 DEALS WITH THAT RICO LAW FOR RACKETEERING, AND THAT COULD CARRY UP TO 20 YEARS IN PRISON. IS JAIL TIME A SERIOUS POSSIBILITY HERE? YES. MEAN IT’S NOT REQUIRED. BUT IF THE JUDGE DOES GIVE A CRIMINAL, YOU KNOW, A SENSE OF INCARCERATION, THE JUDGE HAS TO IMPOSE A SENSE OF AT LEAST FIVE YEARS. AND RICO IS A SERIOUS CHARGE. SO WE COULD BE LOOKING AT JAIL TIME FOR A FORMER PRESIDENT. YES. NOW, THE GEORGIA PROSECUTOR TALKED ABOUT WANTING A TRIAL WITHIN SIX MONTHS. IS THAT REALISTIC, GIVING THE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE INDICTED HERE AND IF NOT REALISTIC, HOW SOON DO YOU THINK THEY COULD GET GOING? WELL, YOU KNOW, A LOT WILL DEPEND ON HOW MANY OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE CHARGED IN THIS INDICTMENT DECIDE TO COOPERATE AND PLEAD GUILTY. RIGHT NOW, IF NOBODY DOES THIS WOULD BE AN ABSOLUTELY SPRAWLING CASE. AND HAVE A VERY HARD TIME SEEING HOW THAT WOULD BE FINISHED, CERTAINLY, OR EVEN WITHIN SIX MONTHS. ARE REALLY READY TO GO WITHIN SIX MONTHS. HOWEVER, IF PEOPLE START PLEADING OUT AS THAT HAPPENS, THE CASE COULD SIMPLIFY. SO FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP CALLING ALL OF THIS ELECTION INTERFERENCE AND THE BALANCE OF ACTUAL POTENTIAL CRIMES ON ONE HAND, AND THEN THE POLITICAL POSTURING ON THE OTHER SIDE. DO YOU SEE THE SCALES TIPPED IN ONE DIRECTION OR THE OTHER? WELL, I MEAN, I THINK OBVIOUSLY BOTH ARE AT PLAY, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, I THINK STILL WE COME BACK TO THE DC INDICTMENT. YOU KNOW, WHICH ALLEGES THAT THE CONDUCT ON JANUARY 6TH EFFECTIVELY INVOLVED INSURRECTION AGAINST THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. I MEAN, TO ME, THAT IS ULTIMATELY GOING TO BE THE FOCAL POINT OF OF EVERYTHING WITH RESPECT TO DONALD TRUMP AND HIS LEGACY AND THE FORMER PRESIDENT CALLING ALL OF THIS UN-AMERICAN AND WRONG. DO YOU AGREE WITH THAT STATEMENT? I ALWAYS TELL MY STUDENTS IT’S I MEAN, IF THE ALLEGATIONS ARE TRUE, THESE ARE VERY, VERY SERIOUS CRIMES. AND THEY UNDERMINE THE INTEGRITY OF OUR DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM. SO, YOU KNOW, IS THAT IS IT UN-AMERICAN TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT THAT, BUT DIFFERENT PEOPLE HAVE DIFFERENT SENSES OF WHAT HAPPENED. AND AND, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE GET THEIR INFORMATION FROM DIFFERENT SOURCES. AND IT TAKES THEM TO DIFFERENT CONCLUSIONS. BEFORE WE LET ME GO, I’LL LET YOU GO. FOUR DIFFERENT INDICTMENTS HERE. ACTUALLY, WE HAVE SOME MORE TIME. I THOUGHT WE WERE WRAPPING UP. LET ME LET ME GO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT. I’LL CIRCLE BACK. SO THE VISION OF FORMER OF A FORMER AMERICAN PRESIDENT IN PRISON CLOSED. WHAT A SPECTACLE, RIGHT. DO YOU THINK THAT JUDGES WOULD AVOID THAT POTENTIALLY BY GIVING HIM PROBATION OR HOME CONFINEMENT? I MEAN, THERE’S POTENTIALLY. YES. MEAN YOU KNOW, PRISON SHOULD REALLY BE RESERVED FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE DANGEROUS. YOU KNOW, AND THE QUESTION IS HOW DANGEROUS WOULD HE BE IF HE WERE LEFT OUT OF PRISON? THAT’S NOT THE ONLY CALCULATION, BUT THAT’S REALLY, YOU KNOW, A CENTRAL FOCUS. I DO THINK LIKE RIGHT NOW, WHAT HE’S BEEN DOING ON SOCIAL MEDIA WOULD GET ANY OTHER DEFENDANT IN A LOT MORE TROUBLE AND BRING THEM RIGHT UP TO THE POINT OF ACTUALLY BEING INCARCERATED PRIOR TO TRIAL. BUT I DO EXPECT THAT JUDGES REALLY DON’T WANT TO DO THAT. FOUR DIFFERENT INDICTMENTS. HOW LONG COULD WE SEE ALL OF THIS GOING ON? WELL, THESE CASES ARE COMPLEX AS WELL. MEAN THIS CERTAINLY HE, THE FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP, WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THIS GO BEYOND THE NEXT ELECTION. I WOULD EXPECT THAT THESE LEGAL PROCEEDINGS, UNLESS THERE’S PLEAS OF GUILTY WHICH RESOLVED THEM, I WOULD EXPECT THAT THEY WOULD CERTAINLY GO BEYOND NEXT YEAR. AND QUICKLY, WITH THE FOUR INDICTMENTS, HOW DO YOU RANK THEM? IS THIS ONE AS SERIOUS AS THE OTHERS? THIS ONE ESPECIALLY COUNT ONE OF THIS ONE, THE RICO COUNT, BECAUSE IT ALSO IT ACTUALLY TAKES YOU INTO OTHER STATES AS WELL, BECAUSE SOME OF THE ALLEGATIONS INVOLVE CONDUCT DONE IN OTHER STATES. AND THEN YOU SAID THE JANUARY 6TH ONE, RIGHT, WITH HIM. YEAH, THAT’S A THAT’S A REALLY