Willis referenced Chesebro's motion specifically in her Thursday filing. "Without waiting on any objection as to the sufficiency of Defendant's Kenneth John Chesebro's filing, the State request that this Court specially set the trial in this case to commence on October 23, 2023, which falls within the term of the next succeeding regular court term after the July-August 2023 term," her motion read.

Chesebro's request for a speedy trial was "the legal equivalent of throwing a bomb into the proceedings and gambling that Willis wasn't ready," Tamar Hallerman, an Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter covering the Fulton County proceedings, wrote on Twitter.

Indeed, legal experts called it a "risky gamble" that appears to have backfired after Willis showed her readiness to push ahead.

"Kenneth Chesebro's asking for early trial date may undercut Trump and others' claiming they need a super long time to prepare for trial," tweeted Ryan Goodman, former special counsel of the Department of Defense.

Joyce Vance, former U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, echoed a similar sentiment.

Chesebro "thought he was calling Willis' bluff on her readiness to go to trial," she tweeted. "He was not. Willis is not here to play."