Former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark became the first defendant to oppose a Georgia prosecutor's proposed March trial date in the 2020 election case involving former President Donald Trump.
Fulton County Democrat District Attorney Fani Willis on Monday indicted Trump and 18 others on felony charges of interfering with the 2020 election.
Clark is charged with sending Georgia officials a letter asking them to hold off certifying the election results while the Justice Department investigated. Trump wanted to appoint Clark as attorney general to probe claims of election fraud.
Clark is charged with racketeering and criminal attempt to commit false statements and writings.
In a proposed scheduling order filed with the court Wednesday, Willis said she wants the trial to start March 4.
Clark's attorney, Harry MacDougald, called Willis' proposal "highly premature" and expressed concerns about her prosecution on multiple grounds.
"The indictment was filed at approximately 10:30 PM on Monday August 14, 2023, while the Motion was filed at 12:49 PM on August 16, 2023," MacDougald wrote, The Hill reported.
"To our knowledge, not one of the 19 defendants named in the indictment has been served with any warrant, taken into custody, had a first appearance, or been arraigned, or waived arraignment."
MacDougald said that neither he nor his client was contacted by the DA's office before the indictment and prosecutors have not attempted to confer about the proposed schedule.
The Hill reported that Clark's opposition to the proposed trial date also indicated he might seek to have his case moved to federal court, or claim he had immunity because of his DOJ role.
"The District Attorney chose to indict 19 people from all over the United States on a turgid and prolix conspiracy theory spread across 98 pages, 161 alleged overt acts, and 41 counts," MacDougald wrote.
"Having built its proposed scaffolding for this matter in such a ponderous and complexified fashion, the District Attorney cannot now pretend as if this were a simple matter, such as a 2-page single-count indictment against a lone defendant who has already waived arraignment."
MacDougald also said his defendant and the legal team were "gravely concerned about the political nature of this case." An early March trial date would place the Georgia trial before Trump's two other scheduled criminal trials.
"The District Attorney's proposed scheduling order is just one example of that overarching problem, as it could be interpreted as an attempt to stake out a place at the head of the line of prosecutors seeking the 'prize' of trying the former President before the 2024 presidential election," MacDougald wrote.