Judge Rules Fani Willis Not Disqualified If Nathan Wade Steps Down

by

The judge granted in part and denied in part the motion to disqualify.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis does need to step down from prosecuting the high-profile case against former President Donald Trump and 14 others if special counsel Nathan Wade is taken off the case.

The judge granted in part and denied in part the motion to disqualify.

He found that the defense failed to prove “an actual conflict of interest,” but the relationship between Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade was a “significant appearance of impropriety that infects the current structure of the prosecution team.”

Judge McAfee ruled that either Ms. Willis or Mr. Wade must step down from the case. The district attorney stepping aside would remove her entire office from the case, which would then need to wait for reassignment to another prosecutor. Mr. Wade is an outside attorney contracted by the office and his leaving the case would allow it to continue without any delay.

The decision came after three days of testimony, including Ms. Willis’s own heated testimony on the witness stand, and additional arguments in court.

Ms. Willis had hired Mr. Wade as special prosecutor to lead the case against President Trump and 14 others for allegedly violating Georgia’s racketeering law in their challenge of the 2020 elections.

Related Stories

Fulton County DA Willis Is Subject of Ethics Complaint Over Campaign Finances
New Court Filing Accuses Fani Willis of Multiple Conflicts of Interest

The attorney for one of the defendants alleged an “improper” relationship between Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade, and a conflict of interest and financial benefit to Ms. Willis that was grounds to disqualify her as prosecutor and dismiss the indictment.

Prior to the evidentiary hearing, Ashleigh Merchant, attorney for defendant Michael Roman, suggested she obtained information supporting the allegations through a former law partner of Mr. Wade’s. Ms. Merchant took the lead in calling on and questioning witnesses for the defense and was later subpoenaed by a Georgia Senate panel to testify about her investigation into the district attorney’s hiring and budget practices.

Contentious Hearing

Two witnesses the defendants called to testify on the timeline of Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade’s relationship both had their credibility called into question by the state.

Robin Yeartie, a former longtime friend of Ms. Willis’s, said Ms. Willis had told her about meeting Mr. Wade at a conference in 2019. Ms. Yeartie said a romantic relationship between the two began “shortly” after, that same year, and that there was “no doubt” in her mind that the two were dating, displaying signs of physical affection like “hugging, kissing.”

Ms. Yeartie also worked as a press aide in the district attorney’s office and resigned from her job, which coincided with a falling out with Ms. Willis after which they never spoke again.

Terrence Bradley, a former law partner of Mr. Wade’s, had also represented Mr. Wade in his recent divorce. Prior to the trial, Ms. Merchant suggested Mr. Bradley was the source of her information for the allegations. But during testimony, he repeatedly declined to answer due to attorney-client privilege.

Near the end of his testimony, a lawyer for the district attorney revealed Mr. Bradley left the law firm between him, Mr. Wade, and a third attorney after an employee accused him of sexual assault. He previously claimed it was something he could not speak about due to attorney-client privilege, prompting the judge and defense to note that aspects to which Mr. Bradley invoked privilege may not in fact be covered.

The hearing only focused on the extent of the relationship and any alleged financial benefit to Ms. Willis.

During Ms. Willis’s testimony, she accused Ms. Merchant of lying more than once.

Ripple Effect

After the huge allegations made in the Jan. 8 motion, half the defendants joined the motion to disqualify, adding other reasons such as “prejudicial behavior.”

The scandal also snowballed far beyond Judge McAfee’s courtroom.

Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade had kept their relationship private, and the timeline covers a period during which Mr. Wade was still married. After the relationship was first mentioned in the Jan. 8 motion, Mr. Wade’s then-wife filed in divorce court bank statements that corroborated the trips mentioned in the election case, including tickets in Ms. Willis’s name. Ms. Wade also tried to subpoena Ms. Willis for a deposition regarding her spouse’s financial situation, but Mr. Wade settled the divorce case before he or Ms. Willis was called on to testify.

The allegation that Ms. Willis may have misused public funds also led to other probes.

Fulton County Audit Committee Chair Bob Ellis sent a letter to Ms. Willis asking whether she “misused” county funds or “accepted valuable gifts and personal benefits from a contractor.”
The Georgia House of Representatives then passed a bill to give an oversight panel the power to remove “rogue prosecuting attorneys who abuse their office.”
The Georgia Senate also adopted a resolution to create a committee investigating the Willis allegations.  According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, State Sen. Bill Cowsert said at the panel’s inaugural meeting on Feb. 9 that multiple “whistleblowers” inside Ms. Willis’s office have already come forward with “allegations about the misuse of both federal funds and state funds.”
Then on Feb. 21, the Fulton County Board of Ethics called a special meeting scheduled for March 7 to hear two complaints brought against Ms. Willis, but later canceled it finding it had no jurisdiction over the district attorney, who is a state officer. A third individual then brought an ethics complaint against Ms. Willis for campaign finance issues to the Georgia State Ethics Commission.
The House Judiciary Committee has also already been investigating Ms. Willis on the allegations that her case is politically motivated, and after the new allegations subpoenaed Ms. Willis and extended its investigation to cover Mr. Wade.

Original News Source Link – Epoch Times

Running For Office? Conservative Campaign Consulting – Election Day Strategies!