FBI election probe lacks ‘faintest possibility of probable cause,’ Fulton County says in court filing
Fulton County Sheriff officers in front of the Fulton County Courthouse on September 06, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. Former U.S. President Donald Trump has entered a not-guilty plea and waived his right to appear at an arraignment hearing. Trump and his 18 co-defendants are charged in a 41-count indictment accusing them of scheming to overturn Georgia’s 2020 presidential election results. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
(FULTON COUNTY, Ga.) — Officials in Fulton County, Georgia, are renewing their effort to have the 2020 election files seized from their election office last month returned, arguing that a recently unsealed search warrant application falls “woefully short” of establishing probable cause of a crime.
In a court filing Tuesday, attorneys for Fulton County argued that the FBI agent behind the search warrant application “intentionally or recklessly omitted material facts” about purported discrepancies in the 2020 election in Georgia, after the Justice Department last week released the sworn affidavit that was the basis for the search warrant.
“Despite years of investigations of the 2020 election, the Affidavit does not identify facts that establish probable cause that anyone committed a crime,” Tuesday’s filing from Fulton County said.
FBI agents on Jan. 28 seized 700 boxes containing ballots and other materials associated with the 2020 election from Fulton County’s Elections Hub and Operations Center after obtaining a search warrant. President Donald Trump has repeatedly made baseless claims that there was voter fraud in the 2020 election, specifically in Georgia, despite Georgia officials auditing and certifying the results and courts rejecting numerous lawsuits challenging the election’s outcome.
FBI Special Agent Hugh Raymond Evans said in the sworn affidavit that following the 2020 election “there were many allegations of electoral impropriety relating to the voting process and ballot counting in Fulton County, Georgia” and that “Some of those allegations have been disproven while some of those allegations have been substantiated, including through admissions by Fulton County.”
Fulton County filed a motion earlier this month seeking the return of the records, and revised its request in light of the recently unsealed affidavit. They argue that the FBI’s investigation focuses on “human errors that its own sources confirm occur in almost every election … without any intentional wrongdoing whatsoever.”
“The Affidavit omits numerous material facts — including from the very reports and publicly-disclosed investigations that the Affiant cites — that confirm the alleged conduct was previously investigated and found to be unintentional,” the filing said.
Attorneys also argued that the FBI’s witnesses are unreliable and that the FBI failed to disclose information that would discredit its own witnesses.
“The Affiant failed to include facts — including from the very sources he cited — that shut the door on even the faintest possibility of probable cause,” the filing said.
King Charles III departs after receiving treatment for an enlarged prostate at The London Clinic on January 29, 2024, in London, England. The King has been receiving treatment for an enlarged prostate, spending three nights at the London Clinic and visited daily by his wife Queen Camilla. Carl Court/Getty Images
(LONDON) — King Charles III announced in a video message Friday that he will be reducing his cancer treatment schedule in the new year, citing his early diagnosis, and urged others to get screened for cancer early as well.
In a pre-recorded video message released Friday as part of Channel 4 and Cancer Research UK’s “Stand Up To Cancer” night, the monarch shared how early cancer diagnosis and treatment had made a difference for him, “enabling me to continue leading a full and active life, even while undergoing treatment.”
He added that thanks to his early diagnosis and treatment, “my own schedule of cancer treatment can be reduced in the New Year.”
In his video message, Charles also spoke about the importance of cancer screenings and early detection.
The message was shown before a live broadcast from a cancer clinic at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, presented by Davina McCall.
“This is a season when our thoughts turn to celebrations with our friends and families,” Charles said. “In the midst of this festive period, I just wanted to ask you to join me today in finding a special place in your hearts and your minds and prayers for the hundreds of thousands of people across our United Kingdom who receive a cancer diagnosis each year — and for the millions more who love and care for them.”
The king acknowledged that a cancer diagnosis can feel “overwhelming,” citing his own experience, and said that early detection “is the key that can transform treatment journeys, giving invaluable time to medical teams — and, to their patients, the precious gift of hope.”
“Throughout my own cancer journey, I have been profoundly moved by what I can only call the ‘community of care’ that surrounds every cancer patient — the specialists, the nurses, researchers and volunteers who work tirelessly to save and improve lives,” he continued. “But I have also learned something that troubles me deeply: At least 9 million people in our country are not up to date with the cancer screenings available to them. That is at least 9 million opportunities for early diagnosis being missed.”
Charles said the “statistics speak with stark clarity,” noting that for bowel cancer caught at the earliest stage, approximately 9 in 10 people survive for at least five years, according to the U.K.’s National Cancer Intelligence Network.
“When diagnosed late, that falls to just 1 in 10,” the king said.
While Buckingham Palace hasn’t disclosed the type of cancer with which Charles was diagnosed or the type of treatment he has undergone, the monarch said that early detection had made a difference in his own life.
He also called it a “milestone” for him to have his cancer treatment reduced in the new year.
“This milestone is both a personal blessing and a testimony to the remarkable advances that have been made in cancer care in recent years, testimony that I hope may give encouragement to the 50% of us who will be diagnosed with the illness at some point in our lives,” he said.
Charles concluded his message by highlighting the U.K.’s new national cancer screening checker online, which, according to the Stand Up to Cancer website, helps those in the U.K. determine which cancer screening programs are available to them.
“As I have observed before, the darkest moments of illness can be illuminated by the greatest compassion. But compassion must be paired with action,” the king said. “This December, as we gather to reflect on the year past, I pray that we can each pledge, as part of our resolutions for the year ahead, to play our part in helping to catch cancer early. Your life, or the life of someone you love, may depend upon it.”
In February 2024, the palace announced that Charles had undergone a procedure for benign prostate enlargement. Following the procedure and subsequent diagnostic tests, “a form of cancer” was identified, according to a statement from the palace at the time.
Charles’ daughter-in-law, Kate, the Princess of Wales, also announced publicly the following month that she had been diagnosed with cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy. Kate, a mother of three and the wife of Charles’ eldest son, Prince William, has not disclosed the type of cancer with which she was diagnosed. She announced in January that her cancer is in remission.
Since Charles’ diagnosis, the king and his wife Queen Camilla have helped raise awareness about the disease. Earlier this year, they hosted a reception at Buckingham Palace where Charles spoke about his cancer diagnosis and treatment and thanked researchers, health care workers and more for their commitment to early diagnosis.
To learn more about cancer screening suggestions specific to U.S., please visit the American Cancer Society website.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address during a Joint Session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on February 24, 2026, in Washington, DC. Trump delivered his address days after the Supreme Court struck down the administration’s tariff strategy and amid a U.S. military buildup in the Persian Gulf threatening Iran. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — In the wake of the “massive” strikes on Iran by the U.S. and Israel Saturday, members of Congress have begun weighing in — with Democrats demanding answers — and some calling for lawmakers to return to Washington to vote on resolutions that would check President Donald Trump’s power to wage war.
Republicans have so far praised President Donald Trump’s decision to undertake “massive combat operations” against Iran, with an eye towards liberating the Iranian people.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., one of Trump’s most ardent supporters, said in a post on X “the end of the largest state sponsor of terrorism is upon us” and celebrated “freedom” for the Iranian people.
“My mind is racing with the thought that the murderous ayatollah’s regime in Iran will soon be no more,” he said in another post. “The biggest change in the Middle East in a thousand years is upon us.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to some members of the so-called Gang of 8 to notify them of the operation in Iran before it was underway, multiple congressional offices confirmed to ABC News.
Members of the Gang of 8 include the top bipartisan House and Senate leaders and the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate intelligence committees.
On Tuesday of this week, hours ahead of the president’s State of the Union address, Rubio and CIA Director John Ratcliffe virtually briefed the Gang of 8 on Capitol Hill on Iran.
Immediately following the briefing, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters: “This is serious, and the administration has to make its case to the American people.”
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford, an Arkansas Republican briefed ahead of the strikes in Iran, issued a statement providing a sense of why the president moved forward with the operation.
“Prior to the initiation of this action, in earnest diplomatic engagements with Iran, President Trump was very clear about his red line from the start and his expectations of Iran during these negotiations. Iran absolutely cannot be allowed to maintain a nuclear weapon or capabilities,” he said in a statement posted on X. “The safety and security of Americans and our allies are on the line.”
The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, said he is praying for U.S. service members but emphasizes, “everything I have heard from the Administration before and after these strikes on Iran confirms this is a war of choice with no strategic endgame.”
Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia is calling on the Senate to return to Washington immediately to vote on a war powers resolution to check the president’s authority to wage war with Iran.
“Has President Trump learned nothing from decades of U.S. meddling in Iran and forever wars in the Middle East?” Kaine said in a statement.
“These strikes are a colossal mistake, and I pray they do not cost our sons and daughters in uniform and at embassies throughout the region their lives,” he added.
“The Senate should immediately return to session and vote on my War Powers Resolution to block the use of U.S. forces in hostilities against Iran. Every single Senator needs to go on the record about this dangerous, unnecessary, and idiotic action,” he said.
It’s very unlikely Republican leadership will heed Kaine’s call to action.
Kaine’s war powers resolution is co-sponsored by Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Senate Minority Leader Schumer. Earlier in the week, Kaine said he would push for a vote in the Senate as soon as next week.
Congressional Democrats announced they too will compel a vote on a war powers resolution relating to Iran next week. House Democratic leadership is expected to force a vote on the bipartisan war powers resolution.
Both efforts in the House and Senate will receive some bipartisan support, but it’s unclear if they will have enough votes to actually pass both chambers.
As strikes were underway on Saturday, Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., said that after the “Iranian regime has slaughtered thousands of its own people in recent days,” the attack on Iran should be a warning to despotic regimes.
“Tyrants and terrorists everywhere should take note: the world is watching. History is watching,” Mace wrote on X.
Notably Sen. John Fetterman, D.-Pa., said he believed Trump was making the right move.
“President Trump has been willing to do what’s right and necessary to produce real peace in the region. God bless the United States, our great military, and Israel,” Fetterman wrote in an X post.
But other Democrats demanded an explanation for the strikes, like Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., a veteran, who lamented the action.
“I lost friends in Iraq to an illegal war. Young working-class kids should not pay the ultimate price for regime change and a war that hasn’t been explained or justified to the American people,” he wrote on X.
Others called for a full briefing and a vote on a proposed war powers resolution that would limit Trump’s power.Rep. Jared Moskowitz demanded a briefing.
“This is a serious moment that demands full transparency and congressional oversight,” Moskowitz, D-Fla., wrote on X.
In this booking photo released by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Michael McKee is shown. (Franklin County Sheriff’s Office)
(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — The surgeon accused of gunning down his ex-wife and her husband entered a not guilty plea at his first appearance in an Ohio courtroom on Friday.
Michael McKee faces four counts of aggravated murder and one count of aggravated burglary for allegedly shooting and killing his ex-wife, Monique Tepe, and her husband, dentist Spencer Tepe, at their Columbus home on Dec. 30, according to police and prosecutors.
McKee, who was taken into custody in Illinois, was booked into the James A. Karnes Corrections Center in Franklin County, Ohio, on Tuesday.
McKee appeared via video at Friday’s brief hearing and did not speak.
His defense attorney, Diane Menashe, told the court, “We acknowledge receipt, waive reading, enter not guilty pleas to all counts.”
“We would also waive bond at this time,” she added.
McKee and Monique Tepe were married in 2015 and divorced in 2017, according to divorce records obtained by ABC Columbus affiliate WSYX. They did not have any children together, according to the records.
Spencer and Monique Tepe married in December 2020, according to their obituary. The Tepes are survived by their two young children, who were found safe inside their home after the Dec. 30 killings.
“We just want justice,” the Tepes’ brother-in-law, Rob Misleh, told ABC News.
“We want this person that took so much from, not just us as a family, but so many more people. And obviously the kids, especially. We want this person to pay for what they did,” he said.
ABC News’ Josh Margolin and Jason Volack contributed to this report.
