Attorney Jenna Ellis pleaded guilty in a Fulton County, Ga., courtroom on Tuesday, tearfully telling the judge presiding over her case that she would not have represented then-President Donald Trump “if I knew then what I know now.”
Ellis’ remarks to the court come after she took a deal that saw her plead guilty to a lesser charge of aiding and abetting false statements and writings regarding the outcome of the 2020 election in Georgia, where Joe Biden defeated Trump by a small margin.
Fulton County Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis initially charged Ellis with two counts, one of which was under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization’s Act (RICO), and the other was Solicitation of Violation of Oath Office, according to reports. Her legal team at Melito Law LLC established a legal defense fund for Ellis through GiveSendGo, which had raised $216,431 as of Tuesday morning.
Ellis, 38, will not serve any jail time and instead will get five years probation, a $5,000 fine, and 100 hours of community service. She is also being forced to write an apology letter to Georgia voters. In addition, she will be required to “truthfully” provide testimony in any further cases brought by District Attorney Fani Willis, presumably including the case against Trump.
“I’m an attorney who is also a Christian. I take my responsibilities as a lawyer very seriously. I relied on others, including lawyers with many more years of experience, to provide me with true and reliable information. Especially since my role involves speaking to the media and to legislators in various states,” Ellis said, shedding tears in front of Judge Scott McAfee.
“What I did not do but should have done, Your Honor, was to make sure that the facts the other lawyers alleged to be true were, in fact, true,” she continued. “In the frenetic pace of attempting to raise challenges to the election in several states, including Georgia, I failed to do my due diligence.”
“I believe in and I value election integrity. And if I knew then what I know now, I would have declined to represent Donald Trump in these post-election challenges,” Ellis told the judge.
She went on to say that she felt “deep remorse” and concluded, “I apologize to the people of Georgia.”
