Donald Trump hires attorney Steven Sadow in Georgia election subversion case

Donald Trump replaced his top lawyer in the election subversion case in Georgia before he surrendered to authorities and had his mugshot taken on Thursday evening.

The former president has installed Steven Sadow, an Atlanta-based attorney specialising in defending high-profile clients, to represent him at the trial where he is accused of running a “criminal enterprise” to overturn the election result in the state in 2020.

Mr Sadow has previously represented Rick Ross, the rapper, in a case where he was accused of “pistol-whipping” his groundskeeper, and the singer Usher, who was accused of knowingly infecting a woman with herpes.

A Trump campaign source told CNN that Mr Sadow was the “best criminal defence attorney” in the state. He will take on prosecutors led by Fani Willis, the district attorney in Fulton County, Georgia.

Mr Trump handed himself in to authorities at Fulton County Jail at 7.30pm local time on Thursday. He was bailed at a cost of $200,000 (£156,832) after his legal team negotiated his bond ahead of his booking. 

Rudy Giuliani, his former attorney, surrendered earlier this week and was also photographed in a mugshot.

Mr Trump and Mr Giuliani are among 19 defendants who have been indicted in the case for a variety of offences, including racketeering.

The criminal indictment is one of four Mr Trump is facing, including a “hush money” case in New York, an accusation of mishandling confidential documents in Florida, and defrauding the American people in Washington, DC.

Prosecutors are pushing for a trial date in March, but Mr Trump’s team has asked that it be delayed until 2026, after the next presidential election.

Mr Sadow will replace Drew Findling as the top lawyer in Trump’s Georgia case, according to a report in The New York Times.

In a statement, he said: “I have been retained to represent President Trump in the Fulton county, Georgia case. 

“The president should never have been indicted. He is innocent of all the charges brought against him.

“We look forward to the case being dismissed or, if necessary, an unbiased, open-minded jury finding the president not guilty. 

“Prosecutions intended to advance or serve the ambitions and careers of political opponents of the president have no place in our justice system.”

Mr Trump denies the charges against him and insists the 2020 presidential election was “stolen” from him in Georgia.

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