Analysis: Kenneth Chesebro – A Chief Architect Of The False Elector Scheme
A new deep-dive analysis published today in Just Security provides a comprehensive look at the words and known conduct of attorney Kenneth Chesebro in the effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
In October, Chesebro pleaded guilty to one felony count of “conspiracy to commit filing false documents” in the Fulton County, Georgia 2020 election subversion case. Chesebro, who was a chief architect of former President Donald Trump’s fake elector scheme, reportedly agreed to assist prosecutors and provide them with documents.
The Just Security analysis, written by Tom Joscelyn and Amb. Norman Eisen (ret.), describes in detail the overall case that could be made on the basis of Chesebro’s conduct in conjunction with other alleged co-conspirators.
Joscelyn served as a senior staff member of the House Jan. 6th Committee and was one of the principal authors of its final report. Eisen served as special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee majority during the impeachment proceedings and trial of President Trump.
“Former Trump attorney Kenneth Chesebro’s recent decision to plead guilty in Fulton County, Georgia deprived the American people of an immediate public trial,” Joscelyn and Eisen write. “The televised proceedings would have showcased – and tested – the District Attorney’s case against Chesebro and, indirectly, former President Donald Trump for the alleged criminal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 presidential election.”
The Just Security analysis serves multiple purposes.
“The first,” Joscelyn and Eisen write, “is specific to pending criminal charges in Georgia. Our analysis shows precisely what Chesebro’s alleged conduct involved and the legal significance for criminal liability for others who joined him in the alleged enterprise.”
The analysis examines the count of the indictment to which Chesebro pleaded guilty, as well as the lead RICO charge in the indictment that remains against 15 co-defendants. The analysis also demonstrates what awaits the other defendants, including former President Trump, in the forthcoming Georgia trial.
Joscelyn and Eisen also discuss what testimony Chesebro himself might provide against co-defendants as part of the plea agreement if the Georgia prosecutors call him as a witness.
“The second purpose of this analysis,” they write, “concerns how Chesebro’s own words, as reflected in the lengthy evidentiary record, might be relevant to potential criminal charges against him, Trump and others in other jurisdictions. Chesebro is readily identifiable as one of the chief unindicted co-conspirators in the federal indictment of Trump. Although it is not clear if Chesebro will be charged federally, his conduct will in any event be a key part of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s trial of Trump. It is thus important to have a full sense of Chesebro’s alleged conduct and how it interacts with criminal laws.”
The authors continue: “Then there are other state jurisdictions. The federal and Georgia indictments both reference how the false electors scheme was carried out across multiple other states. Georgia criminal law is hardly unique, and the charges we explore here are indicative of those other jurisdictions may review. Examining Chesebro’s role in the alleged conspiracy with Trump and others thus provides a roadmap to show how other prosecutors, at the state and federal level, may investigate this case.”
Chesebro apparently played a crucial role in the alleged offenses outlined in the Georgia indictment, Joscelyn and Eisen note. “The significant strength of the case in Georgia indicates the potential for similar charges to be brought successfully elsewhere, including other states. We think the facts analyzed in this article illuminate Chesebro’s role in the conspiracy to overturn the election charged in federal court as well.”
Read the full analysis at Just Security.
