The executive director of the Georgia Prosecuting Attorney Council, Peter Skandalakis, has appointed himself as the special prosecutor in the election interference case involving President Donald Trump. This move came after he struggled to find another prosecutor willing to take on the responsibility.
Skandalakis announced on Friday that he would be taking over the case, as it was the deadline for selecting a new prosecutor or facing the possibility of the case being dismissed. He mentioned that several prosecutors had been approached about the position, but all declined, respecting their privacy by not disclosing their identities or reasons for stepping back.
“I could have easily allowed the deadline to pass since there was no interest in prosecuting this case,” Skandalakis reflected, adding that he felt it was important to take action instead.
He emphasized his intention to handle the case properly and transparently, stating, “My primary goal is to ensure this case is managed fairly, without bias.”
Previously, the Georgia Court of Appeals had removed Fani Willis from the case in December, determining that she had improperly prosecuted her boyfriend as a special prosecutor. The appeals court’s ruling also set aside a lower court decision permitting her to continue if the boyfriend was no longer involved.
This September, the Georgia Supreme Court declined to reconsider Willis’s request to revisit the case. Skandalakis had previously appointed Willis when she was ineligible to prosecute Georgia Lt. Gov. Bert Jones, who was involved in political fundraising.
Ultimately, he chose not to press charges against Jones, who then won his election. Trump’s attorney, Steve Sadow, urged an end to the “politically charged” prosecutions and expressed confidence that a thorough review would lead to the dismissal of charges against Trump.
