Peter Skandalakis, the executive director of Georgia’s Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council, has stepped in to serve as the special prosecutor on the Georgia election interference case involving former President Donald Trump. Skandalakis made the decision after multiple prosecutors declined the appointment, leaving the council with no choice but to have him take over the case.
The deadline to name a new prosecutor was Friday, and with no volunteers, Skandalakis said he felt it was important to keep the case moving rather than let it collapse. “My only goal is to make sure this case is handled fairly, transparently, and without bias,” he explained.
This situation comes after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was removed from the case. The Georgia Court of Appeals disqualified Willis last December after it was revealed she had involved her boyfriend, Nathan Wade, as a special prosecutor, which the court found improper. Willis’s attempt to appeal that decision was denied by the Georgia Supreme Court earlier this year.
Skandalakis is not new to these unusual circumstances. He had previously appointed himself to oversee a case after Willis was disqualified from prosecuting Georgia Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones for attending a fundraiser for his Democratic opponent. Skandalakis ultimately chose not to press charges against Jones, who was re-elected.
Trump’s legal team criticized the ongoing prosecution as politically motivated. Steve Sadow, one of Trump’s lawyers, said the case needs to end and expressed hope that an impartial review would lead to dismissal.
With Skandalakis now at the helm, it remains to be seen how the case will proceed. But for now, the search for someone willing to take on this high-profile role has ended—at least temporarily—with Skandalakis taking the reins himself.
