Georgia Judge Orders Hearing on Allegations DA Fani Willis Hired Former Romantic Partner to Lead Trump Prosecution
A hearing will take place in Georgia next month over accusations that Fulton County District attorney Fani Willis and her lead prosecutor on the county’s election-interference case against former president Donald Trump had an improper relationship and mishandled taxpayer funds.
According to an order by Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, the hearing will be held on February 15. Willis was given until February 2nd to respond to allegations that were reported first in a legal document filed by one of Trump’s co-defendants former campaign adviser Mike Roman.
Lawyers for Roman demanded that Nathan Wade and Willis be removed from the case. They also asked for charges against Roman being dismissed on the basis that “the district attorney and special prosecutor were engaged in a clandestine, improper personal relationship while this case was pending, which resulted in both the special prosecutor and district attorney profiting from this prosecution, at the expense to the taxpayers.”
The filing doesn’t include any proof of their alleged relationship but says that “sources near the special prosecutor as well as the district attorney confirmed they were in a personal relationship.”
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Wade has been paid more than half a million dollars through his involvement in prosecuting the Trump election-interference case.
Willis’s Office said in an earlier statement that they would not issue a public response to the allegations, but instead respond through a court filing.
In mid-August, a Georgia grand jury indicted Trump along with more than a dozen close allies on allegations that they conspired to overturn results of the 2020 Presidential Election.
Trump was accused of conspiracy to commit forgery and filing false documents. He also faces charges of Solicitation of Oath Violation by Public Officer and violation of the Georgia Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).
The other defendants are former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, as well as several members of Trump’s legal team, including Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman.
The indictment states that “Trump and other defendants charged in this Indictment refused accept that Trump had lost and they joined a conspiracy knowingly and willingly to unlawfully alter the outcome of the elections in favor of Trump.” The indictment states that the conspiracy involved a plan to commit at least two acts of racketeering in Fulton County in Georgia, other parts of Georgia and in other States.
The prosecution alleges that Trump and his associates were “engaged” in “various related criminal activities, including but not limited to false statements and writings; impersonating public officers, forgery; filing false documents; influencing witnesses; computer theft, computer intrusion of privacy, computer trespass and invasion, conspiracy to defraud state funds, theft and perjury.”
A New York Times email thread revealed tensions between the prosecutors and the defense attorneys in the case before and after Willis’ allegations were made public.
Steven Sadow, an attorney for Trump, sent a message to the thread that included prosecutors and defense attorneys, asking why they had not responded when he asked them to.
He reportedly wrote, “For the sake of my life, I cannot comprehend why you refuse to reply to the email series below,” on January 5.
Five days later Daysha Young, the executive district attorney, replied to Willis that they “both are aware, especially as a black American woman, some find it hard to treat us with respect.”
She said that some emails she received were rude and disrespectful, lacking professionalism and decorum.
Sadow responded that the accusation of racism was “offensive and uncalled for” and said Young’s refusal to respond to emails showed “a certain degree of arrogance.”
Willis wrote to all the defense attorneys in an email, “In the world of law (and beyond) there will be people who never respect African Americans or women as equals and counterparts. This is a burden that you don’t have to bear. Some are so used that they don’t even realize they do it, while others are deliberately disrespectful.”
She added, “Now that you know I am not a victim of bullying.” “I don’t think anyone in this team would have thought that someone was stupid enough to use such a tactic. You know that I’ve had some of the nation’s most powerful people call me anything but a son of God. “But, here I am and my team are still pursuing justice.”
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