![CNN's senior legal analyst Elie Honig explained Friday the key thing to look out for in a potential plea deal between prosecutors and Kenneth Chesebro in the Georgia racketeering case. [Screenshot CNN]](https://images.dailycaller.com/image/width=960,height=411,fit=cover,f=auto/https://cdn01.dailycaller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Screenshot-2023-10-20-at-10.35.59-AM-e1697812664649.png "CNN's senior legal analyst Elie Honig explained Friday the key thing to look out for in a potential plea deal between prosecutors and Kenneth Chesebro in the Georgia racketeering case. [Screenshot CNN]")
CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig said Friday that the key thing to watch for in a potential plea deal between prosecutors and Kenneth Chesebro is whether the deal requires that he testify in the Georgia racketeering case.
Jury selection began Friday for the trial involving Chesebro, a lawyer who worked for former President Donald Trump and is accused of conspiring with Trump to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia. Fulton County prosecutors reportedly offered Chesebro a plea deal but it remains unclear whether he will accept. Co-defendant Sidney Powell accepted a plea deal on Thursday.
“We’re watching closely to see whether he takes this plea deal or not. It is not at all uncommon to see people plead guilty on the eve of trial, as we may see here in a few minutes,” Honig said. “There is nothing like having a trial looming right in front of you to focus the mind — both ways. Defendants get nervous. If they get convicted, they could go to prison. Prosecutors see a way to avoid the trial and to get a conviction on the books.”
“If they get a plea deal with Kenneth Chesebro, we are not going to have this early trial that was supposed to happen next week,” he continued. “It was supposed to be Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro both. If Chesebro pleads today, then they’re both gone and there will not be an early trial … Of course, the biggest question to watch for, if Chesebro does take a guilty plea, will it be a cooperation deal? Because not all guilty pleas require cooperation.”
CNN’s Kate Bolduan then prompted Honig to elaborate on “what goes into that.” (RELATED: CNN Senior Legal Analyst Says Sidney Powell Plea Could Be ‘Devastating’ For Trump)
“So from the prosecutor’s point of view the first question is, ‘How badly do you need and want the testimony from Kenneth Chesebro?’ There’s a situation where sometimes you say, ‘Look, it would be great to just plead him out, not have to try him, not have to worry about it; we don’t need his testimony,'” Honig said. “There is another situation where you say, ‘We really want his testimony, therefore, we are not going to give him a deal unless he agrees to testify.’ That’s the kind of deal they struck with Sidney Powell yesterday.”
Powell pleaded guilty to several misdemeanor charges in the Georgia 2020 election case just one day before jury selection was scheduled for her Oct. 23 trial date. Powell is required to testify against co-defendants in future proceedings and write an apology letter as part of her plea deal.
Powell pleaded guilty to six misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with performance of election duties. She was originally indicted on two felony counts of conspiracy to commit election fraud and four other felony conspiracy counts, and for violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.