Jenna Ellis Pleads Guilty for Role in Georgia Election Fraud
Christian attorney expresses remorse for defending Trump’s false election claims.
Jenna Ellis, a Christian attorney and former member of Donald Trump’s legal team, pleaded guilty of aiding and abetting the conspiracy to overturn 2020 election results in Georgia.
Ellis’s tearful statement in a Georgia courtroom was in stark contrast to her stance in August when she was indicted. Then, she posted a mugshot with a beaming smile alongside Scripture references and the claim that she was facing persecution.
“As an attorney who is also a Christian, I take my responsibilities as a lawyer very seriously and I endeavor to be a person of sound moral and ethical character in all of my dealings,” said Ellis on Tuesday.
“I failed to do my due diligence,” she said, referring to information provided to her by other lawyers “with many more years of experience.”
Two of those fellow Trump lawyers—Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro—have pleaded guilty in Georgia in the past week.
Ellis’s plea deal means she will avoid prison time but was sentenced to five years of probation and must pay $5,000 in restitution, complete 100 hours of community service, write an apology letter to the people of Georgia, stop posting about the case on social media, and testify against Trump and other co-defendants.
Ellis’s lengthy evangelical resume
Ellis had little legal experience before landing prestigious positions with conservative Christian groups that have so far failed to acknowledge her criminal activities.
James Dobson named Ellis director of the Public Policy Center at Dobson Family Institute, the nonprofit he founded after leaving Focus on the Family. Dobson introduced her to Fox News, where she was discovered by Trump.
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Ellis taught at Colorado Christian University, which incorrectly called her “Dr. Ellis” before correcting the title. She is a Fellow in Constitutional Law & Public Policy at CCU’s Centennial Institute.
She spoke at the Centennial Institute’s Western Conservative Summit in Denver this summer just months after she admitted lying as part of her censure by a Colorado judge.
Liberty University’s Standing for Freedom Center named Ellis as a Senior Fellow, and she has contributed articles on truth and how to “Defend Freedom from Democratic Party Authoritarians.” The articles by Ellis have since been removed.
Ellis was one of two attorneys successfully defending John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church against COVID vaccine mandates on behalf of The Thomas More Society, a Catholic legal group. She appeared in “The Essential Church,” a movie about the case produced by GCC. She also worked with Thomas More’s Amistad Project promoting “election integrity.”
Cedarville University in Ohio offers a Jenna Lynn Ellis Award, an endowed scholarship for junior or senior students planning to attend law school. The school’s website features an article about Ellis and the scholarship.
Ellis is an alumnus and former faculty member at Summit Ministries, the Christian worldview program for youth. She also appeared in the ministry’s podcast, “The Dr. Jeff Show,” to encourage believers “to stand for God’s truth and expect persecution whenever we follow Jesus Christ.”
She hosts “The Jenna Ellis Show” on the Salem Podcast Network, where she focuses on “the rule of law and the importance of integrity in our elections.” She also hosts “Jenna Ellis in the Morning” for the American Family Association’s American Family Radio. Her AFR bio says she is an allied attorney with the Alliance Defending Freedom.
She has appeared on the Christian Broadcasting Network, and condemned government tyranny in a podcast from Concerned Women for America.
Ellis’ legal team created a GiveSendGo fundraising page that has raised more than $215,000 for her legal fees.
In her tearful guilty plea, Ellis said, “If I knew then what I know now, I would have declined to represent Donald Trump in these post-election challenges…I look back on this whole experience with deep remorse.”
Main photo: Jenna Ellis via GiveSendGo
