Harrison Floyd

Last updated

Harrison William Prescott Floyd III [1] is a military veteran and politician. [2] He was a senior campaign staffer on former President Trump's 2020 re-election campaign and is one of the 19 defendants indicted in 2023 in Fulton County, Georgia. [3]

Contents

Early life and education

Born on November 10, 1984, Harrison Floyd is the eldest of three boys. His family and friends call him "H.W." or "Willie." [4] The Floyd family has a history of serving in the U.S. Armed Forces; they moved regularly to different military bases until his graduation from High School. Floyd's father was a Sergeant Major in the Army and received multiple duty assignments to Germany, North Carolina, Texas, Illinois, Virginia, and Korea. [5] As a result, Harrison can speak German and Italian. [6]

After his senior year of High School, Floyd enlisted into the United States Marine Corps . He served for ten years before transitioning into politics. [7]

Floyd served as a U.S. Marine from 2003 to 2014. [1] In a 2019 campaign press release, it stated he had multiple combat deployments to Saqlawiyah and Ramadi, Iraq. [8] In online profiles, interviews, and press releases, Floyd said that his assignments and certifications included machine gunner, combat marksmanship trainer, and martial arts instructor trainer. [9]

After leaving active duty, Floyd earned a combined Bachelors in Political Science and Master's in Legislative Affairs from the George Washington University dual degree program. [10] In 2017, he participated in the Emerging Leaders Seminar at Yale School of Management. [11] The seminar brings together a talented cohort of young underrepresented professionals of color, at Yale, to gain new skills and enhances their career trajectories. [12]

Between 2021 and 2023, Floyd completed Executive Education at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania focusing on Entrepreneurship & Digital Marketing. [13]

Career

In 2017, Floyd began his political career as an intern in the marketing department of The Heritage Foundation. [14] He was accepted into the Young Leaders Program, which has grown to become one of the top policy internships in the nation. After a highly selective interview process, interns are prepared for future roles as conservative leaders. [15]

Following Heritage, Floyd began navigating Capitol Hill. First, as a Legislative Fellow, Floyd worked in Congressman Doug Collins' office. [16] At the time, the Congressman was the Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee. [17] Next, he became a Max Kampelman Policy Fellow at the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. [18] His works as a policy fellow focused on international law, the European Union, economic affairs, and OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.

In 2019, Floyd announced his candidacy for the Georgia's 7th congressional district as a Republican, but dropped out of the race just over a month later to work on President Trump's 2020 re-election campaign. [2] [1] Floyd led the campaign's African American outreach effort called Black Voices for Trump. Their goal aimed to raise support for Trump among African Americans. [2]

In the 2020 presidential election, Floyd helped President Trump increase his share of the black vote by 5 percentage points among black men and 4 percentage points among black women compared to 2016, [19] which gave Trump the highest share of minority votes for any Republican nominee since Richard Nixon in 1960. [20]

Maryland assault case

On February 23, 2023, FBI special agents attempted to serve Floyd with a federal grand jury subpoena related to the U.S. Department of Justice's investigation into efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. [21] [2] [1]

A police report shows Floyd called 911 immediately after and claimed he and his daughter were accosted by a "pair of men who pursued him into his apartment building." [1] Floyd's attorney stated "the two men who approached his client never displayed their credentials, so Floyd could not be sure who they were or what they were doing." [22] Hours after police responded to the 911 call, authorities returned and Floyd was arrested by local police after the FBI agents filed their complaint. [22] In an affidavit, an FBI agent stated that Floyd had aggressively confronted him and "body-slammed." The case remains open as of January 2024. [21] [2] [1]

In May 2023, Floyd was charged in federal court in Maryland with simple assault against a federal officer. [21] [2] [1] A federal magistrate judge released Floyd pending trial on the condition that he surrender his passport and not possess weapons. [1] There have been no significant actions since May of 2023. [22] [23]

On January 4, 2024, Politico released body camera footage that it obtained through a public records request. [24]

Georgia election racketeering prosecution

In August 2023, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis charged Floyd, along with former President Donald Trump and 17 others, with violating Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Floyd was also charged with influencing a witness and conspiracy to commit solicitation of false statements. [2] Floyd is one of two black defendants charged in the Georgia case; the other is Trevian Kutti. [1] [25] Floyd and two other Trump allies—Kutti, a Chicago-based publicist, and Steve Lee, a chaplain and former police officer—are accused of harassing a Georgia election worker into falsely confessing to supposed election crimes. [1] [26]

Of the 19 defendants, Floyd was the only one DA Willis did not previously make arrangements for release on bond. [25] [27] The Fulton County DA's office claimed, after surrendering on August 24, this is the reason he was held for six days at the Fulton County Jail; However, at an emergency hearing 24 hours after his arrest, Judge Emily Richardson deemed Floyd a flight risk. [28] This sparked an enormous backlash in the conservative community, and over $330,000 was crowdfunded for Floyd's legal defense. [29] After public outcry of arresting the only black male defendant, on August 29, a judge set a bond amount ($100,000) along with conditions of pretrial release, and he was released the next day. [27] [30] He waived arraignment and entered a plea of not guilty. [31]

In September 2023, after his release from jail while awaiting trial, Floyd said that he and Joe Oltmann were directing $72,000 in contributions to his legal defense fund to help post bail for inmates in Georgia. He said the effort would prioritize parents charged with nonviolent crimes. [32]

In November 2023, Fulton County DA Willis failed to revoke Floyd's bond citing social media posts. DA Willis stated he had "engaged in numerous intentional and flagrant violations" of his bond agreement. Posting on rebranded Twitter his "effort to intimidate codefendants and witnesses, to communicate directly and indirectly with codefendants and witnesses, and to otherwise obstruct the administration of justice." Judge Scott McAfee found no intimidation in any of Floyd's cited posts. However, he did find a technical violation regarding tagging witnesses on the platform X. Judge McAfee declined to remand Floyd, and instead ordered a revision of his bond. [33]

Personal life

Floyd has a wife and daughter. [1] He currently lives in North Bethesda, Maryland. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Eastman</span> American legal scholar (born 1960)

John Charles Eastman is an American lawyer and academic. Due to his efforts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election, attempting to keep then-president Donald Trump in office and obstruct the certification of Joe Biden's victory, he has been criminally indicted, ordered inactive by the State Bar of California, and recommended for disbarment. Eastman has lost eligibility to practice law in California state courts, pending his appeal of the state bar judge's ruling that recommended him for disbarment. Eastman is also a co-conspirator in the federal indictment brought against Trump over his attempts to subvert the 2020 election results and prevent the certification of Biden's election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Manafort</span> American political consultant (born 1949)

Paul John Manafort Jr. is an American former lobbyist, political consultant, and attorney. A long-time Republican Party campaign consultant, he chaired the Trump presidential campaign from June to August 2016. Manafort served as an adviser to the U.S. presidential campaigns of Republicans Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and Bob Dole. In 1980, he co-founded the Washington, D.C.–based lobbying firm Black, Manafort & Stone, along with principals Charles R. Black Jr. and Roger Stone, joined by Peter G. Kelly in 1984. Manafort often lobbied on behalf of foreign leaders such as former President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych, former dictator of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos, former dictator of Zaire Mobutu Sese Seko, and Angolan guerrilla leader Jonas Savimbi. Lobbying to serve the interests of foreign governments requires registration with the Justice Department under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA); on June 27, 2017, he retroactively registered as a foreign agent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick Gates (political consultant)</span> American political consultant (born 1972)

Richard William Gates III is an American former political consultant and lobbyist who pleaded guilty to conspiracy against the United States for making false statements in the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. He is a longtime business associate of Paul Manafort and served as deputy to Manafort when the latter was campaign manager of the Donald Trump presidential campaign in 2016, and after under Kellyanne Conway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Biggs</span> American felon and former Proud Boys organizer (born 1980s)

Joseph Randall Biggs is an American veteran, media personality, organizer of the Proud Boys, and convicted felon for his participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gretchen Whitmer kidnapping plot</span> Kidnapping plot in 2020

On October 8, 2020, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced the arrests of 13 men suspected of orchestrating a domestic terror plot to kidnap American politician Gretchen Whitmer, the Governor of Michigan, and otherwise using violence to overthrow the state government. Some have labeled the attempt as an example of stochastic terrorism, where violent rhetoric by prominent figures inspired the plot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominic Pezzola</span> American

Dominic Pezzola is an American convicted felon and member of the Proud Boys who participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, a violent attack at the U.S. Capitol. He is best known for stealing a police riot shield and using it to break a Capitol window on January 6, 2021, making him the first rioter to breach the building. Indicted in 2021, on federal charges, he was tried in 2023 alongside Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and his key lieutenants, Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, and Zachary Rehl. In May 2023, following a five-month jury trial, Pezzola was convicted of obstructing a congressional proceeding, assaulting a police officer, and other crimes. He was acquitted of seditious conspiracy, the most serious charge. The jury deadlocked on other charges against Pezzola, including conspiring to obstruct the counting of the electoral votes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fani Willis</span> American attorney (born 1971)

Fani Taifa Willis is an American attorney. She is the district attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, which contains most of Atlanta, serving since 2021. She is the first woman to hold the office. Willis investigated the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, which resulted in indictments against Donald Trump and 18 alleged co-conspirators on charges of racketeering and other crimes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Criminal proceedings in the January 6 United States Capitol attack</span> List of people charged with crimes

On January 6, 2021, supporters of then-President Donald Trump attacked the U.S. Capitol Building, disrupting the joint session of Congress assembled to count electoral votes to formalize Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 United States Presidential Election. By the end of the month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had opened more than 400 case files and issued more than 500 subpoenas and search warrants related to the riot. The FBI also created a website to solicit tips from the public specifically related to the riot and were especially assisted by the crowdsourced sleuthing group Sedition Hunters. By the end of 2021, 725 people had been charged with federal crimes. That number rose to 1,000 by the second anniversary of the attack, and to 1,200 by the third anniversary, at which point over 890 people had been found guilty of federal crimes. These federal cases are handled by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia (D.C.). State cases, of which there are fewer, are handled in the D.C. Superior Court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of violent incidents at the United States Capitol</span>

The United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., became the meeting place of the United States Congress when the building was initially completed in 1800. Since that time, there have been many violent and dangerous incidents, including shootings, fistfights, bombings, poisonings and a major riot.

Kenneth John Chesebro ( CHEZ-broh; born June 5, 1961 is an American attorney known as the architect of the Trump fake electors plot that conspired to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

After the results of the 2020 United States presidential election determined U.S. president Donald Trump had lost, a scheme was devised by him, his associates, and Republican Party officials in seven states to subvert the election by creating and submitting fraudulent certificates of ascertainment to falsely claim Trump had won the electoral college vote in those states. The intent of the scheme was to pass the fraudulent certificates to then-vice president Mike Pence in the hope he would count them, rather than the authentic certificates, and thus overturn Joe Biden's victory. This scheme was defended by a fringe legal theory developed by Trump attorneys Kenneth Chesebro and John Eastman, detailed in the Eastman memos, which claimed a vice president has the constitutional discretion to swap official electors with an alternate slate during the certification process, thus changing the outcome of the electoral college vote and the overall winner of the presidential race. The scheme came to be known as the Pence Card. By June 2024, dozens of Republican state officials and Trump associates had been indicted in four states for their alleged involvement. The federal Smith special counsel investigation is investigating Trump's role in the events. Testimony has revealed that Trump was fully aware of the fake electors scheme, and knew that Eastman's plan for Pence to obstruct the certification of electoral votes was a violation of the Electoral Count Act.

In February 2021, Fulton County, Georgia, district attorney Fani Willis launched a criminal investigation into alleged efforts by then-president Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the certified 2020 election victory of Democratic candidate Joe Biden and award the state's electoral college votes to Trump. A special grand jury recommended indictments in January 2023, followed by a grand jury that indicted Trump and 18 allies in August 2023. The charges include conspiracy, racketeering and other felonies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgia election racketeering prosecution</span> State RICO case against Trump, Giuliani and others

The State of Georgia v. Donald J. Trump, et al. is a pending criminal case against Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States, and 18 co-defendants. The prosecution alleges that Trump led a "criminal racketeering enterprise", in which he and all other defendants "knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome" of the 2020 U.S. presidential election in Georgia. All defendants are charged with one count of violating Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute, which has a penalty of five to twenty years in prison. The indictment comes in the context of Trump's broader effort to overturn his loss in the 2020 presidential election.

Stephen Cliffgard Lee is an American chaplain and former law enforcement officer allegedly involved in efforts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election results in Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Voices for Trump</span> American political group

Black Voices for Trump was the official African American outreach effort of the Trump 2020 Campaign. Their goal was to raise support for former United States president Donald Trump among African Americans. The group was founded in November 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mug shot of Donald Trump</span> Booking photograph of the former U.S. president

On August 24, 2023, after being indicted on racketeering and related charges, Donald Trump, former president of the United States, voluntarily surrendered himself to authorities at the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta, Georgia, where a mug shot of him was taken. In the photograph, Trump, wearing a blue suit with a white shirt and a red tie, glowers at the camera in front of a gray backdrop. His face is lit from the side and from above. It is the first and thus far only police booking photograph of a U.S. president. After its publishing, the mug shot was used on merchandise by Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, in Internet memes, and featured on various media reports worldwide.

The Fulton County Jail, also referred to as Rice Street, is a prison in Atlanta, Georgia. It was built to hold up to 1,125 prisoners in 1989 but now occasionally tops 3,000.

Trevian C. Kutti is an American publicist and lobbyist who worked for celebrities including R. Kelly, Kanye West, and Regina King. Starting in 2020, she also worked as a cannabis lobbyist in Illinois. In 2023, Trevian Kutti was charged with three felonies and indicted in State of Georgia v. Donald J. Trump, et al. for her alleged attempt to influence the testimony of an election worker following the 2020 United States presidential election in Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arizona prosecution of fake electors</span> Criminal prosecution concerning Trump fake electors

State of Arizona v. Kelli Ward, et al. is a state criminal prosecution concerning the Trump fake electors plot in Arizona.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, Devlin Barrett and Patrick Marley (August 23, 2023). "Defendant in Trump Georgia case was earlier charged with attacking FBI agent". Washington Post.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Who Is Harrison Floyd: Trump Co-Defendant And Black Voices For Trump Leader Still In Fulton County Jail". Forbes. Aug 26, 2023.
  3. ↑ Trump, President Donald. "Campaign 2020 President Trump Remarks at "Black Voices for Trump" Rally". C-Span. National Cable Satalite Corporation. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  4. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "About". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  5. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "About". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  6. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "Languages". Linkedin. Self. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  7. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "About". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  8. 1 2 "Harrison Floyd Announces Candidacy For 7th Congressional District of Georgia" (Press release). May 7, 2019 – via Metro Atlanta CEO.
  9. ↑ "What diversity means to one Marine". Audacy, Connecting Vets. February 8, 2019.
  10. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "Education Details". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  11. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "Education Details". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  12. ↑ School of Management, Yale. "Emerging Leaders Seminar". Som.yale.edu. Yale University. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  13. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "Education Details". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  14. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "About". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  15. ↑ Foundation, Heritage. "Young Leaders Program". Heritage.org. The Heritage Foundation . Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  16. ↑ Floyd, Harrison. "About". Linkedin. Harrison Floyd. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  17. ↑ Copyright Office, United States. "Doug Collins". Congress.go. Library of Congress. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  18. ↑ Copyright Office, United States. "Harrison William Prescott Floyd". www.osce.gov. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  19. ↑ Glaston, William. "New 2020 voter data: How Biden won, how Trump kept the race close, and what it tells us about the future". brookings.edu. Brookings Institution. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
  20. ↑ Evans, Zachary (November 4, 2020). "Trump Won Highest Share of Non-White Vote of Any Republican Since 1960, Exit Polls Show". Yahoo.com. National Review. Retrieved Nov 4, 2020.
  21. 1 2 3 Russ Bynum, A Trump supporter indicted in Georgia is also charged with assaulting an FBI agent in Maryland, NBC Washington (August 25, 2023).
  22. 1 2 3 Kyle Cheney, Josh Gerstein. "Arrest footage of Trump co-defendant provides glimpse into Jack Smith probe". Politico.com. Politico. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  23. ↑ Schonfeld, Zach. "Detained Trump co-defendant was arrested earlier this year". the hill.com. The Hill. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  24. ↑ Kyle Cheney, Josh Gerstein. "Arrest footage of Trump co-defendant provides glimpse into Jack Smith probe". Politico.com. Politico. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  25. 1 2 Harrison Floyd III, one of two Black people indicted with Trump, is the only one still in jail, The Grio (August 25, 2023).
  26. ↑ Trump Georgia indictment: Who are Trevian Kutti, Harrison Floyd and Stephen Lee?, Reuters (August 16, 2023).
  27. 1 2 Kate Brumback, The only defendant in the Georgia election indictment to spend time in jail is released on bond, Associated Press (August 30, 2023).
  28. ↑ "Emergency hearing for Harrison Floyd | FOX 5 News". YouTube .
  29. ↑ https://www.givesendgo.com/Official_Harrison_Fund.
  30. ↑ Peter Charalambous, Harrison Floyd, only defendant held in Georgia election case, released from Fulton County Jail, ABC News (August 31, 2023).
  31. ↑ List of those who have entered pleas in Georgia election interference case, FOX 5 Atlanta (September 5, 2023).
  32. ↑ "Trump Georgia indictment defendant says he's paying bond for some Fulton County inmates". Atlanta News First. September 12, 2023.
  33. ↑ "Prosecutor asks judge to revoke bond for Harrison Floyd in Georgia election case". AP. November 15, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.