Fulton County DA seeks to remain on Trump prosecution

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Thursday entertained arguments on whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be removed from her prosecution against former President Donald Trump. Willis has charged Trump and 18 co-defendants with seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia. Trump has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing. Some of his co-defendants have pleaded guilty.

Why are there calls for her removal? Trump and some of his co-defendants assert that Willis monetarily profited from hiring her romantic partner, special prosecutor Nathan Wade, to head up the prosecution against Trump. Trump co-defendant Michael Roman was the first to file a motion against Willis. He sought to dismiss the charges against him, arguing that Willis had profited from hiring Wade when the couple went on vacations with the salary Wade received from Willis’ office. Trump and several other co-defendants later co-opted that motion.

How has Willis responded to the allegations? Willis, in a court filing earlier this month, acknowledged the existence of the relationship with Wade. She argued that it didn’t start until after she had hired him to work on the prosecution in November 2021—Roman’s filing alleged that it began before she hired Wade—and she argued that she shouldn’t be removed from the prosecution, nor should the charges be dismissed.

What was this hearing meant to decide? At Thursday’s hearing, McAfee sought to determine the facts disputed between the co-defendants and Willis’ team. McAfee had said Monday that there was sufficient evidence to go forward with a hearing to decide if Willis should be removed from the case. Since Willis and Wade had acknowledged the relationship, McAfee on Thursday had to determine only whether Willis profited from the relationship.

What sort of facts came out in the hearing? As of about 1 p.m. on Thursday, witness Robin Bryant-Yeartie—who said she was a friend of Willis and had worked in the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office with her—testified that Willis and Wade’s romantic relationship began in late 2019, not November 2021 as Willis had said. She also testified that the relationship still existed after November 2021.

Did Wade or Willis dispute those assertions? Wade afterward took the stand and said his romantic relationship with Willis began in early 2022. Wade also claimed that Willis reimbursed him for at least one flight and that he and Willis “roughly shared” the travel costs. Wade said that, as of 2015, his marriage had been “irreparably broken” and that previously documented statements he made about not engaging in sexual relationships before his divorce proceedings were truthful.

Did Willis ever take the stand? Later in the afternoon, Willis took the stand and called allegations against her about her relationship with Wade “lies.” At one point, she held up sheets of paper in each hand—which appeared to be court filings—insisting that they were full of lies. McAfee responded by calling for a short break, after which he told everyone in the courtroom to behave professionally. At least twice during her testimony, McAfee had to caution Willis to specifically answer questions and act professionally in her responses to defense lawyers’ questions.

How did her testimony compare to testimony from other witnesses? Willis denied that she was especially close with Bryant-Yeartie. She, like Wade, also testified that the pair’s romantic relationship began in early 2022. Willis also claimed that she used cash to reimburse Wade for travel arrangements but acknowledged she did not have written records proving her claim.

Dig deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta’s report in The Stew about the prosecution against Trump in Fulton County.