Medical process prohibits travel to testify in Georgia

• Rudy Giuliani has recently been barred from testifying before a grand jury.
• But local prosecutors in Georgia pointed to evidence of his recent travels.
• A judge is holding a hearing Tuesday on Giuliani’s request to delay grand jury testimony.

A week before Rudy Giuliani was scheduled to appear before a grand jury in Georgia, his attorneys contacted local prosecutors to inform them that a recent medical procedure would prevent the former New York City mayor from flying to Atlanta, court records show.

But Fulton County District Attorney Fannie Willis’s request to delay Tuesday’s grand jury hearing in Georgia’s effort to overturn a 2020 election loss got little sympathy from the office. Willis’ office instead said the receipts — and a tweet from New Hampshire — suggest Giuliani actually has no problem traveling.

In a court filing Monday, local prosecutors in Georgia said they obtained records showing Giuliani “purchased numerous airline tickets in cash, including tickets to Rome, Italy, and Zurich, Switzerland” for flights between July 22 and July 29. (Willis’ office stopped short of saying Giuliani took those flights.)

“All those days were after the witness’s medical procedure,” one prosecutor wrote on the eve of Giuliani’s scheduled grand jury trial.

“Finally,” the prosecutor added, “based on a letter to the district attorney stating that the witness was not cleared for air travel, the district attorney offered to provide the witness with alternative means of transportation, including bus or train fares.” Includes screenshot.

A Fulton County judge responded to Giuliani’s “emergency” request by setting a hearing for Tuesday at 12:30 p.m., delaying the grand jury hearing. Giuliani’s attorney, William H. Thomas Jr., declined to comment.

In a separate court appearance Monday, Thomas Giuliani admitted that he traveled from New York to New Hampshire following an undisclosed medical procedure. But Giuliani emphasized in italics that he made the trip “in a private car with a passenger.”

Thomas said it was “unauthorized air travel” referring to the doctor’s note. But Willis’ office wrote, “They have remained steadfast in their refusal to agree to proceed.” Thomas added that Giuliani will appear before a grand jury, but Willis’ office has requested that he testify in person.

“It’s important to note that Mr. Giuliani is here [sic] “I will not seek to unduly delay, or obstruct these proceedings, or to avoid providing evidence or testimony that is not required by certain claims in this case,” Thomas wrote. Any ethical obligations that preclude that cooperation will be upheld.

The violent activities of Fanny Willis

Court filings shed light on Monday’s dispute between local prosecutors and Giuliani’s attorneys in Georgia as he was scheduled to appear before a grand jury investigating election meddling by Trump and his allies in the state.

As part of the inquiry, domestic prosecutors are insisting on a phone call Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger to get enough votes to overturn his loss to Joe Biden.

Willis has moved aggressively in recent weeks. In addition to winning court battles, forcing Giuliani to testify in front of a grand jury, legal observers have named the Georgia probe among the probes, tracking Trump-fake voters and subpoenaing Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina. Dangerous for the former president.

In the year Following the 2020 election, Giuliani was among the former president’s allies involved in a plan to create so-called alternate slates of Trump voters in key battleground states, including Georgia. Court records show that Willis’ office has notified 16 pro-Trump voters in Georgia of potential charges related to the criminal investigation.

In the year In December 2020, Giuliani appeared before a pair of committees in the Georgia state legislature and spent hours circulating false conspiracy theories about election fraud. “You can’t vouch for Georgia in good faith,” he told lawmakers.

The House committee investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol highlighted Giuliani’s efforts in Georgia. One of the committee’s public hearings in June featured testimony from Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, a former Georgia election official who has been the target of conspiracy theories alleging that Trump and Giuliani rigged elections for Biden.

“It’s turned my life upside down. I’m not giving out my business cards anymore…I don’t want anyone to know my name,” Moss said in emotional testimony before the House on Jan. 6. “I never go to the grocery store. I never go anywhere. I’ve gained about 60 pounds. I just don’t do anything.”