AJC:

A federal judge on Friday rejected a request from former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows to move his Fulton County election interference case to U.S. District Court in Atlanta.

In a 49-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Steve Jones said Meadows did not meet the legal burden for demonstrating the case should be removed. He remanded it back to Fulton Superior Court….

A source close to Meadows’ legal team said his attorneys plan to quickly appeal the ruling to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. Meanwhile, four other defendants have also filed for federal removal, and Trump recently indicated he would do the same in the weeks ahead….

Jones ruled that, while Meadows was clearly a federal officer as Trump’s top White House aide, he was not acting in his federal capacity in bolstering Trump the candidate.

”The evidence adduced at the hearing establishes that the actions at the heart of the State’s charges against Meadows were taken on behalf of the Trump campaign with an ultimate goal of affecting state election activities and procedures,” wrote Jones, an appointee of former President Barack Obama.

“Meadows himself testified that working for the Trump campaign would be outside the scope of a White House chief of staff,” he added.

Update: Meadows has already appealed to the 11th Circuit.