BY KATE BRUMBACK
ATLANTA (AP) — The Georgia prosecutor who has brought charges accusing former President Donald Trump and others of illegally trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election in the state is asking the judge in the case to take steps to protect jurors.
The preemptory step by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis comes after the grand jurors who returned the 41-count indictment against Trump and 18 others were subjected to harassment when their information was posted online. It’s a reflection of the highly polarized feelings surrounding the criminal cases against the former president.
Willis wrote in a motion filed Wednesday that the grand jurors’ information was posted “with the intent to harass and intimidate them.” Additionally, the motion said, the personal information of Willis, a Black woman, and that of her family and staff have been posted online ”intertwined with derogatory and racist remarks.”
News cameras are frequently allowed in the courtroom for trial proceedings in Georgia, but video and still photographers are regularly instructed not to show images of the jury. During the jury selection process, the prospective jurors are typically referred to by number rather than by name.
Willis is asking Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee to prohibit defendants, the news media or anyone else from creating or publishing images — including video, photos and drawings — of jurors or prospective jurors. She is also asking that the judge prohibit the publication of any information that would help identify them, “specifically physical descriptions, telephone numbers, addresses, employer names and membership affiliations.”
