By ERIC TUCKER, KATE BRUMBACK and JILL COLVIN
ATLANTA — Donald Trump was set to surrender Thursday to authorities in Georgia on charges that he illegally schemed to overturn the 2020 election in that state, a booking expected to yield a historic first: a mug shot of a former American president.
Meanwhile, he replaced his lead attorney.
Trump’s arrival follows the presidential debate in Milwaukee the night before featuring his leading rivals for the 2024 Republican nomination, a contest in which he remains the leading candidate despite accelerating legal troubles. His presence in Georgia, though likely brief, is swiping the spotlight anew from his opponents after the debate in which they sought to seize on his absence to elevate their own presidential prospects.
Just ahead of his expected surrender, Trump hired a new lead attorney for the Georgia case. Prominent Atlanta criminal defense attorney Steve Sadow took the place of another high-profile Atlanta criminal defense attorney, Drew Findling, who had represented the former president as recently as Monday when Trump’s bond terms were negotiated. But by Thursday Findling was no longer part of the team, according to a person with knowledge of the change who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
“The president should never have been indicted. He is innocent of all the charges brought against him,” Sadow said in a statement. “We look forward to the case being dismissed or, if necessary, an unbiased, open minded jury finding the president not guilty. Prosecutions intended to advance or serve the ambitions and careers of political opponents of the president have no place in our justice system.”
It’s not the first time this year that Trump has shaken up his legal team either in the run-up to an indictment or in the immediate aftermath. One of his lead lawyers, Tim Parlatore, left the legal team weeks before Trump was indicted in Florida on…
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