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ATLANTA (AP) -- The prosecutor investigating possible illegal meddling in the 2020 election in Georgia has agreed to immunity deals with at least eight Republican fake electors who signed a certificate falsely stating that then-President Donald Trump had won the state. Defense attorney Kimberly Debrow revealed the existence of the immunity deals in a court filing Friday, saying her eight clients had accepted the agreements last month. The filing does not identify the people who were offered immunity deals.
Last July, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' office revealed that each of the 16 people who signed the false elector certificate was a target of her investigation, which is examining whether Trump and his allies committed any crimes while trying to overturn his narrow election loss.
The 16 fake electors met at the state Capitol on Dec. 14, 2020, and signed a certificate declaring falsely that Trump had won the presidential election and declaring themselves the state's "duly elected and qualified" electors.
The news of the immunity deals shows that Willis continues to work on her case as she prepares to make decisions on whether to seek charges this summer. In letters sent to law enforcement agencies late last month, she advised them to prepare adequate security as she intends to announce her charging decisions between mid-July and early September.
Debrow's filing Friday came in response to a motion filed last month by Willis seeking to bar the defense attorney from further participation in the proceedings stemming from the investigation. Debrow called Willis' motion "reckless, frivolous, offensive, and completely without merit."
A spokesperson for Willis on Friday declined to comment on Debrow's motion.
At the time when Willis informed the 16 fake electors last summer that they could face charges in the investigation, 11 of them were represented by Debrow and another attorney, Holly Pierson, who were hired by the state Republican Party. Fulton County Superior Judge Robert McBurney, who oversaw the special grand jury that had been seated to aid the investigation, ruled in November that Georgia Republican Party Chairman David Shafer could not share an attorney with the other 10 fake electors represented by Debrow and Pierson.