Former President Donald J. Trump’s bail has been set at $200,000 in a racketeering case that accuses him and 18 associates of election interference in Georgia. Unlike in his previous three criminal cases, Mr. Trump and the other defendants will be required to pay cash upon being booked in Atlanta.
While defendants are only required to come up with 10 percent of the bail amount, this could still prove challenging for some, including Rudolph W. Giuliani, Mr. Trump’s former personal lawyer, who is facing financial difficulties due to various legal entanglements. Racketeering cases can be lengthy and costly for defendants, as evidenced by the ongoing seven-month jury selection process in another racketeering case involving high-profile rappers in the same court.
The financial burden is a concern for several defendants in the Trump case. Cathy Latham, a Republican Party official in Georgia who acted as a fraudulent elector for Mr. Trump in 2020, has set up a legal defense fund as a retired public school teacher living on a pension. However, the initial $3,645 she has raised falls far short of her $500,000 goal.
Jenna Ellis, a lawyer who played a significant role in the efforts to overturn the 2020 election results in favor of Mr. Trump, expressed frustration about the impending legal costs following her indictment in the case.
Last week, Mr. Trump and the other defendants were indicted on charges of conspiring to undermine the election results in Georgia, where Mr. Trump narrowly lost to Joseph R. Biden Jr. Prosecutors and law enforcement officials in Atlanta aim to treat the defendants like any other accused felons within the city’s criminal justice system, including mug shots, fingerprinting, and cash bails. However, security demands from the Secret Service are expected to complicate the booking process for a former president, which is scheduled for later this week.
Reporting from Atlanta contributed by Sean Keenan.