A Georgia judge considering complaints about Fulton County DA Fani Willis says a hearing will take place Thursday where a judge will weigh claims to disqualify her from the case of a Donald Trump associate.
The lawyer for the Trump associate accused of taking part in the state’s ‘fake voter’ scheme plans to call a series of witnesses who will speak about allegations of an ‘improper’ relationship between Willis and a lawyer from her team. a fire that would draw Trump to yet another courthouse.
Among the witnesses the attorney wants to call is the prosecutor’s father, who would testify remotely on behalf of his daughter from his California home amid claims about her relationship with special counsel Nathan Wade.
On the table will be claims about the nature of the evidence and whether any of it could disqualify Willis from overseeing the Trump affairs now that she has acknowledged a personal “relationship” with the outside member of her team.
“The state has admitted that a relationship existed,” Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee said, referring to the personal relationship Willis acknowledged in a filing between herself and Wade.
‘So what remains to be proven is the existence and extent of any financial benefit, if any. Because I think it is possible that the facts alleged by the defendant could lead to disqualification. “I think there should be a hearing to determine the substance of the allegations,” he said.
FILE PHOTO: Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis speaks at a news conference alongside Prosecutor Nathan Wade after a grand jury returns indictments against former President Donald Trump and his allies in their effort to overturn the state’s 2020 election results, in Atlanta, Georgia, USA August 14, 2023. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage./File Photo
The hearing remained on schedule after a stunning lawsuit last week by Donald Trump associate Michael Roman’s attorney. That led to a filing from Willis in which he acknowledged a “personal relationship” with Wade but denied any impropriety and said the relationship began after he joined the team overseeing the complex racketeering investigation.
Roman’s attorney Ashleigh Merchant claims the relationship was inappropriate and undermines charges against her client related to Trump’s election efforts in the state.
Willis’ attorney said in court Monday that many of Merchant’s claims are inaccurate and destroyed what they called a “fishing expedition” for banking records and testimony about Willis, who regularly targets Donald Trump as part of a “witch hunt” against him.
Merchant claims to have information in her file that could undermine some of Willis’ claims.
Lawyer Ashleigh Merchant wants to call a series of witnesses to support her case on details of Willis’ ‘relationship’ with Nathan Wade
Fulton County Senior Judge Scott McAfee weighed potential witnesses’ attempts to quash their testimony
Monday’s hearing was broadcast online
Among the people she calls to testify is Terrance Bradley, Wade’s former attorney, who will also to give evidence that the personal relationship preceded Wade’s appointment as special prosecutor in Willis’ office.
Gabe Banks, a former federal prosecutor who has been subpoenaed to appear, answered questions from Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee after Merchant said Bradley had received phone calls “that he believed were preventing him from testifying.”
Banks acknowledged calling Bradley, but said, “I called him on a personal level because One, he’s my friend, and Two, he’s my fraternity brother,” he said.
“I was concerned that he might be emotional given his previous relationship with Mr. Wade,” he said.
Merchant wants witnesses to establish that the affair Willis acknowledged began before she hired Wade to act as a special prosecutor in her office. She also claims that she benefited financially from the lavish vacations the two shared.
“In paragraph 17 of your affidavit, you swore that you met Ms. Willis in October 2019 at a Municipal Court training session,” she wrote in response to an affidavit from Wade cited in Willis’ filing.
“Isn’t it true that you started more than just a friendship at that conference?” merchant asked.
Merchant’s filing says that “witnesses will testify that you lived with Ms. Willis in her home in South Fulton until her father moved in with her and you then began living together in the apartment of a friend of hers in East Point.”
Anna Cross, who represents the district attorney’s office in the case, said Monday that “of course that’s not true” and said she wished Willis’ father would participate remotely in Thursday’s hearing at his California home. Due to travel considerations, he will participate via Zoom.
“I will be shocked if Ms. Merchant can support this statement,” she said. “There was no cohabitation,” she continued, adding that “DA Willis and Nathan Wade never lived together.”
“The defense doesn’t bring you facts, the defense doesn’t bring you justice, the defense doesn’t bring you gossip,” she said.
Willis’ team also seemed ready to tackle the disputes that the two romantic partners used what Merchant called an “an” AirBNB ‘safe house’ in Hapeville, outside Atlanta.
Former federal prosecutor Gabe Banks, who was subpoenaed Thursday, spoke during Monday’s hearing about his own “lack of knowledge about any romantic relationship.”
“I really think it’s a fishing expedition,” he said.
Merchant said one of her key witnesses has received phone calls in an attempt to “dissuade him from testifying.”
To raise the stakes even further, Trump plans to attend the trial in person WashingtonPost reported, just a day after attending a closed hearing in Florida regarding his classified documents case.