In a stunning turn of events, former Donald Trump attorney Jenna Ellis has pleaded guilty to felony charges, making her the third Trump lawyer to admit to similar charges in the past week.
For months, speculation has been brewing about the investigations from Fani Willis into former President Trump and his associates. After the guilty pleas from Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell last week, now Ellis has stepped forward and admitted that she was aware of false statements being made to Georgia lawmakers in a legislative hearing. The crime Ellis is admitting to falls under the heading of “aiding and abetting” and carries a felony conviction and years of probation.
The former lawyer’s plea agreement states that she “failed to do her due diligence” and that she “regrets believing that challenging the election results should be pursued in a just and legal way.” Additionally, the agreement states that Ellis was “assisting with the execution of” the legislative hearing alongside former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and another Trump campaign attorney, Ray Smith.
“If I knew then what I knew now, I would have declined to represent Donald Trump in these post-challenges. I look back on this experience with deep remorse,” Ellis said, her voice breaking at times.
She also said, “I failed to do my due diligence.”
“In the wake of the 2020 presidential election, I believed that challenging the results on behalf of President Trump should be pursued in a just and legal way…I endeavored to represent my client to the best of my ability,” she said.
This most recent guilty plea, along with those of Chesebro and Powell, have sparked intense speculation over what consequences may arise for Giuliani and Smith. Ellis’ admission of guilt was tearful and direct, and it implicated former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Ellis has implicated former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani in her plea deal by admitting that she aided and abetted the former mayor’s “false statements” to Georgia lawmakers at a December 2020 hearing, where they both peddled baseless voter fraud claims.
She said before the court in her plea that she was “assisting with the execution of” that legislative hearing with Giuliani and another co-defendant, Trump campaign attorney Ray Smith.
You can watch her statement below:
Jenna Ellis reads a tearful statement in court after her guilty plea where she throws Rudy Giuliani under the bus and says she wishes she had never gotten involved. pic.twitter.com/GFSXAlxuzs
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) October 24, 2023
