A total of 19 defendants — including former President Donald Trump — were forced to surrender to authorities in Fulton County, Georgia, in connection with criminal charges accusing them of engaging in illegally interfering in the 2020 presidential election.
The case represented Trump’s fourth indictment this year and resulted in the first mug shot ever taken of a former president.
https://t.co/MlIKklPSJT pic.twitter.com/Mcbf2xozsY
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2023
After being held in custody for a short time, however, Trump was released on bail, as were 17 of the other 18 defendants. Only one individual — Harrison Floyd — was denied bail by Judge Emily Richardson. Many critics on the right have pointed out that he is one of only two Black defendants in the group.
While many leftists consistently decry the criminal justice system as inherently and irredeemably racist, Floyd’s predicament has not been the subject of widespread protests by Black Lives Matter or like-minded activists.
As of this writing, he remains behind bars at Fulton County Jail, a facility critics have described as unfit for humans and rarely populated by White individuals. Reports indicate he is unable to afford a defense attorney and represented himself when he appeared in court for the first time.
“I cannot afford an attorney for something like this,” he told the judge.
For reasons that were not immediately clear, Floyd was apparently denied access to a public defender.
Richardson denied bail in the case due to a separate count he faces in Maryland related to an alleged attack of an FBI agent. Although the Georgia accusation that he attempted to coerce an election worker to claim ballots in the 2020 election were manipulated is a nonviolent charge, the judge nonetheless determined that he would be a flight risk and decided to hold him in jail.
“There are grounds for bond to be denied at this point,” Richardson declared. “I’m going to go ahead and find that you are a risk to commit additional felonies and a potential risk to flee the jurisdiction. So I’m going to deny bond, but a full consideration of bond will be addressed.”
According to reports, Judge Scott McAfee, the presiding judge in the case, will have the final word over whether Floyd — who has insisted that he is not a flight risk — is eligible for release on bail.
