They also accused her of inflaming ‘racial animus’ with recent comments at a church
Attorneys for former President Donald Trump asked a judge overseeing his Georgia election case to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis amid allegations that she engaged in an improper relationship with her special prosecutor in the case, while also accusing her of making “racially charged statements.”
The allegations against Ms. Willis, a Democrat, and her appointed special prosecutor, Nathan Wade, come days after a Trump co-defendant in the case, Michael Roman, also sought to disqualify her.
Mr. Roman made the initial accusations that the pair were involved in an “improper” and “clandestine” relationship, while also alleging that Mr. Wade paid for the two to go on lavish vacations.
The motion from President Trump’s lawyers on Jan. 25 was anticipated after they signaled they would consider trying to get the district attorney disqualified. The motion endorses Mr. Roman’s and asks the court to dismiss the entire grand jury indictment.
“The awesome power to prosecute ought never to be manipulated for personal or political profit,” their motion stated. “In addition to the extensive misconduct alleged in Roman’s motion, the DA did just that in her speech by wrongfully inserting racial animus into this case to publicly denounce and rebuke the defendants, and to defend her personal and political reputation against the numerous and diverse allegations Roman made in his court filing.”
Mr. Roman previously sought to dismiss the case and disqualify Ms. Willis and her office, accusing Ms. Willis of financially benefiting from an alleged romantic relationship with Mr. Wade. Her office has paid Mr. Wade more than $650,000 for his work on the case, records show.
Willis’s Response to Allegations
At a church in Atlanta this month, Ms. Willis alleged that her critics are motivated by a racial bias, without providing evidence and without making any public comments on the allegations that she was involved in a relationship with Mr. Wade.
“First thing they say, ‘Oh, she gonna play the race card now,’” she said at a church event. “But no, God, isn’t it them who’s playing the race card when they only question one?”
