Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis may soon regret the day she appointed her married lover as lead prosecutor in former President Donald Trump’s Georgia election interference case.
Fulton County Superior Court will take up allegations of fraud this week, including claims that Willis benefited financially from the employment of her ostensibly underqualified boyfriend, Nathan Wade. Despite his best efforts, Mr. Willis may even have to testify under oath in his chambers with Mr. Trump watching.
The judge overseeing the case has made it clear that Democratic prosecutors could ultimately be disqualified, but that may not be Willis’ concern. After all, if it turns out that Willis and her lover misled the court in a Feb. 2 court filing that suggested their affair didn’t begin until after Wade’s appointment, Fulton County attorneys could face legal repercussions.
Even if the Black Panther’s daughter had a fun day in court on Feb. 15, as House Republicans investigate whether Willis’ office misappropriated federal funds, she ultimately may not be able to escape serious consequences. The Georgia Senate is investigating possible wrongdoing on her part. Fulton County Commissioner Bob Ellis has asked Willis for information about the office’s finances and prosecution. And she is being sued for failing to turn over records pursuant to Georgia’s Open Records Act.
accusation
On January 8, Georgia attorney Ashley Merchant filed a 127-page court filing on behalf of President Trump’s co-defendant, Michael Roman, asking for “the disqualification of Willis and the dismissal of the charges against Roman on the following grounds: He filed his claim, and the walls started closing in on Willis. The entire prosecution is invalid and unconstitutional. ”
“The district attorney and special prosecutor are disqualified from prosecuting this matter because they violated laws regulating the use of public funds, suffered from an irrevocable conflict of interest, and violated their oaths under the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct.” It should be done.” filing.
In addition to suggesting that Willis and Wade had a relationship before his 2021 appointment, the filing also suggests that Wade received preferential treatment from the DA’s office and was underqualified. .
In the weeks since, additional motions have been filed or adopted on behalf of Trump, Bob Chealey, former Georgia Republican Party Chair David Shafer, and former Coffee County Republican Party Chair Kathy Latham.
The latest motion to disbar Mr. Willis is broadly consistent with the outline in the Jan. 8 filing, which alleges that prosecutors incited “racial hostility and bias against the defendant” and that Mr. Trump and his co-defendants. It has also been suggested that the lawsuit may have been tainted.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee indicated that the Feb. 15 hearing will primarily focus on whether Willis derived a material benefit from hiring Wade and the timeline of their romantic relationship. did.
report ABC News.
washington post
I got it.However, McAfee won’t hear testimony about Wade’s lack of qualifications because Willis had the right to hire anyone with a “heartbeat and a bar card,” he said.
stakes
“I think it’s clear that disqualification is possible if evidence of an actual conflict or appearance of a conflict is presented,” Judge McAfee said during Monday’s hearing.
“The state has acknowledged that a relationship existed, so what must now be proven is the existence and extent of any economic interest,” McAfee continued.
Willis admitted earlier this month:
176-page court filing Although she claimed to have had a romantic relationship with Wade, “as of November 2021, when Special Counsel Wade was appointed, there was no personal relationship between the two.”
The filing by Mr. Willis’ legal team further states that “Special Counsel Wade’s personal relationship with District Attorney Willis has never involved any direct or indirect financial benefit to District Attorney Willis.” “Mr. Willis had no personal conflict of interest that would justify disqualification.” Contact us personally or with the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office. ”
Lawyers for Trump’s co-defendant Michael Roman filed the complaint.
new complaint Friday’s report cast doubt on whether the lovers were honest in court about how long they had been together.
In the filing, attorney Terrence Bradley, a former friend and business associate of Wade’s, said, “Wade and Willis’ romantic relationship began before Willis took office as District Attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, in January. It states that he has “unprivileged personal knowledge that the incident had begun.” 2021. ”
“Thus, Bradley can confirm that Willis signed Wade after Wade and Willis began their romantic relationship, thus refuting Wade’s affidavit’s claim that they did not begin dating until 2022. “can be done,” the application continues.
Bradley will reveal that Willis and Wade sometimes lived together at a residence that was previously partly occupied by Robin Yearty, a former employee of the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office and a friend of Willis’.
“The questions here are whether a relationship existed, whether it was romantic or non-romantic in nature, when it was formed, and whether it continues,” McAfee said Monday. I think that’s what it means.” “And that’s relevant because it’s combined with the question of the existence and extent of personal interests that are conveyed as a result of their relationship.”
Mr. Wade and Mr. Willis tried desperately to have Thursday’s hearing canceled, but their protests appear to have fallen on deaf ears.
McAfee said the defense succeeded in establishing “a bona fide basis for the validity” of the Democratic prosecutor’s testimony and the girlfriend’s testimony.
Nevertheless, Anna Cross, a lawyer at the Crown Prosecution Service,
claimed “The defense is not presenting the facts, the defense is not bringing the law, the defense is bringing gossip, and the court should not tolerate that behavior.”
President Trump appears to be planning to show up hoping to see Willis shoved over the coals.
The Washington Post, citing an anonymous individual “with knowledge of possible travel,” said:
report President Trump may also appear at the misconduct hearing, along with David Shafer, which would draw more attention to the case and the allegations made there about Willis.
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