Rudy Giuliani's attorney crashed and burned in court Friday, as he tried to file a motion to raise concerns about double jeopardy — and was immediately swatted down as the judge poked a very simple hole in his argument, noted legal analyst Katie Phang.
Giuliani, a close associate of former President Donald Trump who served as a federal prosecutor and the mayor of New York City, is one of several co-defendants charged in the Fulton County, Georgia election racketeering case.
"If I understand the argument, is it simply that other states could prosecute your client for the same predicate act?" asked the judge.
"Yes, Judge," said the attorney. "For instance, our code in Georgia, you can't be sentenced for a RICO, the RICO, and the predicate act, but in Florida you can."
"But how does that become a double jeopardy issue if all the states are separate sovereigns?" asked the judge. "I mean, couldn't you be convicted in every single state, all 50 states, if there was an issue, without any double jeopardy concerns whatsoever?"
"You may have a point, Judge," conceded the attorney. "I mean, there may be something to that."
Law professor Randall Eliason says he has the answer.
"The solution to this," he said Friday, "is to not commit the same crime in multiple jurisdictions."