ATLANTA — A special prosecutor has been assigned to look into whether Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones should face criminal charges over efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in the state.
The Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia (PAC) announced Thursday that its executive director, Pete Skandalakis, will handle the matter after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was barred from prosecuting Jones as part of her election interference case against former President Donald Trump and others. According to the announcement, he will fill the formal role of "district attorney pro tempore."
Jones was one of 16 state Republicans who signed a certificate stating that Trump had won Georgia and declaring themselves the state’s “ duly elected and qualified ” electors. As a state senator in the wake of the election, he also sought a special session of Georgia’s Legislature aimed at overturning Democrat Joe Biden’s narrow win in the state.
As Willis was investigating possible illegal election meddling by Trump and others, Jones argued that Willis should not be able to pursue charges against him because she had hosted a fundraiser for his Democratic opponent in the lieutenant governor's race. Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled in July 2022 that Willis' actions created an “actual and untenable” conflict of interest and disqualified her and her office from prosecuting Jones.
After a disqualification, the PAC is responsible for finding a new prosecutor to take over the investigation. Former Gwinnett County district attorney Danny Porter, who has not been involved in the case, said Thursday that PAC Executive Director Skandalakis likely struggled to find another prosecutor willing to step in.
"I suspect that he's been searching diligently to find someone to take it and finally realized there's nobody else," Porter said.
Skandalakis' move to lead the case himself role breathes new life into the investigation that had been stalled since that 2022 disqualification.
Jones has previously denied wrongdoing, saying he and other electors acted only to preserve Trump’s chances if the former president won a court challenge that was pending at the time. Three others who signed the Republican elector certificate were among the 18 people indicted along with Trump in August by a Fulton County grand jury.
“I’m happy to see this process move forward and look forward to the opportunity to get this charade behind me," Jones said in a statement Thursday. "Fani Willis has made a mockery of this legal process, as she tends to do. I look forward to a quick resolution and moving forward with the business of the state of Georgia.”
Porter worked with Skandalakis in the past when Skandalakis led the investigation into the 2020 death of Rayshard Brooks. Porter served as essentially an "assistant district attorney pro tem" in that case, he said.
Working in that outside role gives prosecutors a more independent perspective when handling high-profile matters, said Porter.
"The one good thing is that you can really ignore the political pressure," Porter said. "We were able to operate pretty freely outside of any kind of political pressure that people brought to bear on us."
When asked Thursday if he'd been asked to join the Jones investigation, Porter said no.
But he didn't rule it out.
"Pete and I are good friends. We've been friends forever. If he told me he needed help, I would almost certainly say, 'Yeah, I'll help you,'" Porter said. "But I don't know that he's going to do that."