Will Georgia prosecutor be removed from election case against Donald Trump? Judge to hear arguments
ATLANTA– Should District Attorney Fani Willis be removed from Georgia’s election interference case against former President Donald Trump because of her personal relationship with a special prosecutor? Lawyers were expected to battle the issue at a hearing in Atlanta on Thursday.
Willis, Georgia’s Fulton County district attorney, has hired outside attorney Nathan Wade to help investigate whether Trump and his allies committed crimes while trying to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state. Wade has led the team prosecuting the case since charges were filed in August.
Willis’ removal would be a stunning development in the most expansive of the four criminal cases against Trump. An additional delay would likely reduce the chances of a trial taking place before the November election, when he is expected to be the Republican nominee for president. A judge is expected to confirm at a separate hearing in New York on Thursday whether Trump’s hush-money criminal case will go to trial next month as planned.
The hearing in Georgia, which will be broadcast live, has the potential to delve into uncomfortable details of Willis and Wade’s relationship. Throughout the case, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee made a serious effort to keep the drama in his courtroom to a minimum and keep the attorneys focused on legal arguments.
He suggested at a hearing Monday that he would continue that trend, saying that if something amounts to “intimidation or unnecessary embarrassment,” he “will not feel inhibited from intervening even without objection from counsel, to achieve this. and keep it focused on the problems at hand.”
Since the allegations of an inappropriate relationship came to light last month in a motion filed by Trump co-defendant Michael Roman, the former president has used them to cast doubt on the legitimacy of Willis’ case. Other Republicans have cited them in calling for investigations into Willis, a Democrat up for re-election this year.
Roman, a former Trump campaign aide and onetime White House aide, alleged that Willis and Wade had been involved in an inappropriate romantic relationship that began before Wade was hired. According to the motion, Willis paid Wade large amounts of money for his work and then personally benefited when he paid for the vacations for both of them, creating a conflict of interest.
Roman, who has since been joined by Trump and several other co-defendants, asks McAfee to drop the charges and prevent Willis, Wade and their offices from remaining involved in the case.
Earlier this month, Willis and Wade filed a response in which they acknowledged a “personal relationship” but said it did not result in any direct or indirect financial benefit to the district attorney. In an affidavit accompanying the filing, Wade said the relationship began in 2022, after he was hired as special counsel, and that he and Willis shared travel expenses and never lived together.
Willis argued that she has no financial or personal conflict of interest that would justify removing her or her office from the case. In her filing, she called the allegations “salacious” and said they were designed to make headlines.
McAfee said during a hearing Monday that Willis could be disqualified “if evidence is presented showing a conflict of fact, or the appearance of one.”
He said the issues he wants to explore at the hearing include “whether a relationship existed, whether that relationship was romantic or non-romantic in nature, when it arose and whether it continues.” Those questions are only relevant, he said, “in conjunction with the question of the existence and extent of any personal benefit arising from the relationship.”
Roman’s attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, has subpoenaed Willis, Wade, seven other employees of the district attorney’s office and others, including Wade’s former business partner, Terrence Bradley. Merchant has said Bradley will testify that Willis and Wade’s relationship began before he was hired as special prosecutor.
McAfee on Monday denied Willis’ request to drop the subpoenas, but agreed to reconsider them after Bradley testified.