The evidentiary hearing on the personal relationship between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Nathan Wade continued into a second day.
Mr. Wade is the special prosecutor she appointed to take the lead in the racketeering case that accuses former President Donald Trump and 14 others of an alleged criminal conspiracy in their actions to challenge the 2020 election.
Both testified on the first day. The defense would have to show a conflict of interest and financial benefit for Ms. Willis to warrant her disqualification from the prosecution.
Ashleigh Merchant, defense attorney for Michael Roman, is taking the lead in questioning for the defense, as the motion to disqualify originated from information she obtained and made public in a court filing.
Anna Cross, an attorney Ms. Willis had contracted alongside Mr. Wade, is leading the questioning for the district attorney’s office.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee presided over the hearing and is not expected to rule on the motion today.
Willis’s Father Testifies
Ms. Cross called John Clifford Floyd III, Ms. Willis’s father, to the witness stand. Mr. Floyd, now retired, was a longtime trial lawyer.
Former Georgia Gov. Testifies
After a break and change in order of witnesses, former Georgia Gov. Roy Eugene Barnes took the witness stand.
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In 2021, Mr. Barnes met with Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade about the special prosecutor position.
“To which I replied, I had mouths at a law office,” he testified. “I could not do that.”
The defense has alleged that Ms. Willis hired Mr. Wade, with whom she had a relationship, to enrich herself. The state is arguing that other attorneys were approached to take the special prosecutor job before Mr. Wade, and expressed reservations because of the pay and potential harassment.
Steve Sadow, attorney for President Trump, asked Mr. Barnes whether Ms. Willis had brought up Mr. Wade as a possibility for special prosecutor in talks with him. Mr. Barnes said no, but he wasn’t surprised, because Mr. Wade is a “good organizer.”
Mr. Barnes checked his calendar and said the meeting with Ms. Willis was Oct. 26, 2021.
Willis Done Testifying
Ms. Cross intended to call Ms. Willis as the state’s first witness, but Friday morning said they no longer had questions for her.
Original News Source Link – Epoch Times
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