Security will be tightened around the Fulton County Courthouse in coming weeks ahead of the possible local indictment of former President Donald Trump. He’s been indicted elsewhere three times, most recently on Tuesday.
Pryor Street SW between MLK Jr. Drive and Mitchell Street will be closed to general traffic from 5 a.m. Monday through at least Aug. 18, with two right lanes on Pryor Street being designated as media parking, the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday.
The courthouse and Fulton County Government Center will remain open to the public, with pedestrian traffic still allowed on Pryor Street. No public parking will be allowed anywhere on the perimeter of the courthouse.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has said she’ll have most staff members work remotely between Monday and Aug. 18, and magistrate court hearings will be virtual.
“This remote work will reduce the number of Fulton County District Attorney’s office staff in the Fulton County Courthouse and Government Center by approximately 70%,” Willis said earlier this year in a letter sent to Chief Judge Ural Glanville, who is presiding over the sprawling trial involving rapper Young Thug and other defendants. Only Willis’ leadership team, armed investigators and a couple of other teams will be working in the building in coming weeks, the letter said.
People can expect to see increased police presence around the courthouse and the sheriff’s office has canceled time off during the time period.
“Everyone is on 12-hours shifts,” spokeswoman Natalie Ammons said. “It is absolutely all hands on deck but the goal is to keep everyone safe around the courthouse.”
Willis has been investigating efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. That includes the former president’s phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which he urged the fellow Republican to “find” the 11,780 votes needed to win Georgia.
The sheriff’s office has sent deputies to Trump’s court proceedings in both New York and Miami to brace for what could happen in downtown Atlanta in the coming weeks. Ammons did not confirm if deputies have been sent to Washington D.C. ahead of Trump’s court appearance Thursday.
